Jan Lokpal Authority Of India

Till now it is absolutely clear that the proposed Jan Lokpal Law of India must be Techno Legal in nature. The existing Bills are suffering from many “Deficiencies” and absence of “Techno Legal Aspect” is one of them.

For instance, Technology is the Best Whistleblower and a Jan Lokpal Authority or Law that does not believe in this “Technological Use” is bound to be another Authority with practically little benefits and uses. That is why a Strong and Effective Whistleblowers Protection Law in India is urgently required.

However, I wish to cover another related aspect of the proposed Jan Lokpal Law of India. The “Real Strength” of the proposed Jan Lokpal Law of India would be the “Jan Lokpal Authority of India”. If we have a Weak or Ineffective Jan Lokpal Authority in India, the proposed Law cannot serve its purpose.

The first aspect that must be resolved is what should be the “Composition” of the proposed Jan Lokpal Authority of India. I believe that the composition of the proposed Jan Lokpal Authority of India must essentially involve Experts representing fields like Judicial, Legal, Technological, Social Justice, etc.

No matter how many Experts from each field are made part of the Authority, the Authority must be Techno Legal in nature. Preference must be given to Experts who have knowledge of both Technical and Legal aspects.

Another aspect that needs to be considered is the “Nature” of such Authority. Should such authority be a “Constitutional Authority” or can it be a “Statutory Body” under the proposed Jan Lokpal Law of India? If it is a Constitutional Body, what additional efforts we need to make to make it “Functional” immediately? If it is a Statutory Body, it can be Constituted along with the passing of the Jan Lokpal Law of India.

These issues require immediate deliberations before the Parliamentary Standing Committee and they must be resolved while passing the Jan Lokpal Law of India by the Parliament.

The Fiasco Of Jan Lokpal Law Of India

Till now two things are absolutely clear regarding the Jan Lokpal Law of India. The first is that Indian Government is not at all serious about eradication of corruption in India. The second is that it is adopting “Double Standards” in this regard. On the one hand it is saying that making a law is the prerogative of the Parliament of India. On the other hand, the Parliament of India is not at all interested in enacting a strong, effective and robust Corruption Law of India.

This is the reason why Jan Lokpal Law has not been enacted since more than 42 years it was originally proposed. The delaying tactics are not new for Indian Government. It has been almost two months since the Joint Drafting Committee (JDC) for the drafting of Jan Lokpal Bill of India 2011 was formulated. Considering the present circumstances, it is clear that no draft Bill for Jan Lokpal would be introduced in the current monsoon session of the Parliament.

Further, even if some “Secret Bill” is introduced in this regard in the Parliament of India, it would not be passed just like the past 42 years. Even by some miracle such Bill would be passed by Parliament of India, it would not be made an “Enforceable Law” by the Executive. Finally, even if it is made an enforceable law by the Executive, it would, in all probably a useless piece of Legislation.

I am not a pessimist but I also do not believe in “Blind Optimism”. It is very clear to me what is happening and where the Corruption Law of India is heading to. When crucial Bills like Privacy Law, Jan Lokpal, etc are kept out of “Public Scrutiny”, positive outcomes cannot be expected.

I also shared my suggestions with the Department of Personnel, Government of India, which can make the proposed Jan Lokpal Bill of India 2011 strong, robust and effective. However, they seem to have not been considered by the Department so far. This raises the genuine question whether Indian Government is open to critical and genuine public inputs in this regard or this entire episode of JDC is a façade to gain more time?

The Jan Lokpal Law of India must be “Techno Legal” in nature that must incorporate the benefits of Law, Technology and Constitutional Duties. Further, if Jan Lokpal Law Of India 2011 has to be successful it must incorporate many more issues like Technology, Whistleblower Protection, Harmonisation between Judicial and Lokpal fields, Right to Information, Mandatory Electronic Services Delivery, etc.

With the present approach of Indian Government that seems to be distant reality. God save India from omnipresent corruption that is not going to end for many more decades, perhaps never.

Jan Lokpal Act 2011 Of India Must Be Strong, Robust And Effective

Any Person or Institution that believes that Jan Lokpal Law of India is not required is certainly Corrupt and Anti National. This is the reason why the Government of India cannot deny its enactment. However, Indian Government can “Delay” its enactment and the same would amount to “Denial” of the very Jan Lokpal Law of India.

This “Delaying Tactics” is not new to Indian Government. The Lokpal Bill has been drafted for more than 42 years by Indian Government and it has failed to become an applicable law till now. The first Lokpal Bill was passed in the 4th Lok Sabha in 1969 but could not get through in the Rajya Sabha. Subsequently, Lokpal bills were introduced in 1971, 1977, 1985, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2005 and in 2008.

India’s intentions to ignore Corruption were also apparent when it did not “Ratified” the United Nations Convention against Corruption. Although India signed the Convention in 2005 but Indian Government refused to ratify the same. This is also the reason why Anti Corruption Laws of India remained not only “National’ in nature but also redundant and ineffective. Of course, India has now ratified the Convention and it has become mandatory for India to keep its laws in line with the same.

Realising that India is not at all serious in eradicating corruption, the Civil Society took up the task upon itself. Under the leadership of Anna Hazare the fight against widespread corruption in India was started. This resulted in the formulation of a “Joint Drafting Committee” (JDC) to draft a Jan Lokpal Bill of India 2011. However, the JDC failed to reach at a “Consensus” and it is believed that the deadline of drafting of the Jan Lokpal Bill would pass without any such Bill being drafted.

In the meanwhile, Baba Ramdev also started his fight against widespread corruption in India. He also raised a demand to consider black money deposited in foreign bank accounts as “National Property” and to formulate a law in this regard.

Unfortunately, in my personal opinion, the Government of India adopted “Unconstitutional Methods” to derail and demoralise this agitation of Baba Ramdev and he was detained and then deported from New Delhi. This entire episode is “Highly Unfortunate” and it would have been better if the matter could have been solved through “Negotiations”.

Although Indian Government has taken a “Drastic Step” yet my “Concerns” are more than that alone. In this entire episode we have forgotten about enactment of suitable Corruption Laws in India like Jan Lokpal Act of India 2011. My specific concerns at this stage are what the Indian Jan Lokpal Act 2011 must incorporate to make it Just, Reasonable, Strong, Robust and Effective. I believe that Jan Lokpal Act 2011 of India is “Not a Panacea” for all sorts of Corruption related problems in India. Nevertheless it is an important “Milestone” in the fight against corruption in India. So besides fighting Corruption, India must also focus upon Administrative, Legal and Judicial Reforms.

Further, if Jan Lokpal Act 2011 of India has to be successful it must incorporate many more issues like Technology, Whistleblower Protection, Harmonisation between Judicial and Lokpal fields, Right to Information, Mandatory Electronic Services Delivery, etc.

The Jan Lokpal Act 2011 of India must be Techno Legal to be most successful. It must “Empower” Indian Citizens not only Legally but also Electronically. E-Governance and use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) must be an essential part of the Lokpal Mechanism.

Further, the proposed Jan Lokpal Act 2011 of India must be kept “Flexible” by incorporating “Enabling Provisions” now for which Rules can be framed subsequently. This way a “Vested Right” is created in favour of Indian Citizens to fight against corruption in India and even the Government of India would have sufficient time to develop finer modalities at a later stage.

I hope India Government would consider these “Concerns and Suggestions” of mine and they would prove to be useful to all concerned.