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Confiscate the property of the corrupt

HK. Dua’s front-page editorial, “The stink of corruption” (April 29) exhibits despondency and helplessness regarding the problem of corruption in all the three wings of the state. There seems to be no will on the part of the powers that be to tackle this menace. Otherwise, where there is a will, there is a way.

The Press is doing yeoman’s service by highlighting the problem and creating awareness about its ill-effects. The result is that the people in general are out to condemn the holders of power. The corrupt now do not enjoy the respect of the public. On the other hand, the people openly abuse the corrupt in public places, buses, trains and parks.

The government may not rise to the occasion, but if things don’t improve, the common people will take the law into their hands and resort to violence by thrashing the corrupt in the open.

Before that happens, the government should enact a law to confiscate the property of those — officials and politicians — who cannot account their property disproportionate to their known sources of income.

Clearly, the onus should be on the holder of the property and not on the prosecution.

A.C. AGGARWAL, IAS (retd), New Delhi

II

The politician-bureaucrat nexus is the main cause of rampant corruption. Officers with integrity suffer. No body can honestly deny that the government at the Centre is weak, inefficient and has failed to deliver the goods. How can corruption be eradicated when the politicians, who formulate the policy, are themselves corrupt?

Men who are responsible for the women’s miseries cannot do justice to them in framing policies for their emancipation.

The conditions in the judiciary are no better where a case is tried in two separate courts for the same offence.

Price rise is the outcome of corrupt practices of profiteers and hoarders. Our political masters have exceeded the limits of decency by sleeping in the Lok Sabha or keeping themselves absent during the discussion on price rise. Rape, murder, dacoity have been on the rise and criminals go scot free where as old people who forget their driving licences at home are challaned, scolded and humiliated. For how long this state of affairs will continue?

VIJAY KUMAR SHARMA, Kaithal

III

Our electoral system is the root cause of corruption. It is opaque and the funding of political parties and candidates during elections has largely been unaccounted for and unregulated. In fact, this hitherto has not been even under the domain of the Right to Information Act. Huge black money has made its way to parties and their leaders. Consequently, elections are out of bounds for potentially good candidates with poor resources.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati has amassed crores of rupees claiming “gifts” from her supporters. Amazingly, the income-tax authorities headed by bureaucrats have accepted this strange thesis. Similarly, many IAS and IPS officers of Punjab are corrupt only because of their collusion with the political bosses, past and present. When and how will this nexus collapse is anybody’s guess.

S.K. KHOSLA, Chandigarh

IV

Earlier, corruption was confined to the lower level of administration, but now it has become a waterfall, flowing from the top to the bottom. The corrupt should be showed the door and the system should encourage only those who are upright and honest.

Can’t we have a proper system to select candidates of integrity and character for various representative institutions? The nexus between the corrupt politicians, businessman and bureaucrats is responsible for the present sorry state of affairs. The process of reforms for a clean system has to begin from politicians to bureaucrats and down the line.

GURDERSHAN SINGH, Chandigarh

US shows the way At a time when Punjab’s ground water table is fast depleting, we should learn from the Coachella Valley of California (USA). Not long ago, this valley experienced alarming decline of groundwater. Now its groundwater resources help irrigate about 60,000 acres and provide drinking water to one lakh houses in the valley. The Coachella valley produces nearly 95 per cent of dates grown in the US, the others being grapes, citrus, pepper, avocados, artichokes, bears, carrot, corn and cotton. To combat water table decline, the authorities took steps such as sub-surface irrigation, effective storm management by using urban waste water and main-harvesting and conservation measures to control waste of the water resources. The valley’s key to success has been the Master Plan. It is updated every alternate year with special focus on technological upgradation and overall efficiency. The Water Authority officials say that there is no water decline and that it may soon get replenished in the form of restoration. Dr G.S. DHILLON, Chandigarh