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Corruption and Indian Politics – The way

ahead

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Corruption in politics

Nowadays corruption is very common in politics. And Corruption is not new to India. There

are lots of scams since independence that have shamed India at the international level.

Political corruption is the use of power by government officials for illegitimate private gain.

An illegal act by an officeholder constitutes political corruption only if the act is directly

related to their official duties, is done under color of law or involves influence. Forms of

corruption vary, but include bribery, extortion, cronyism, nepotism, patronage, graft, and

embezzlement. Corruption may facilitate criminal enterprise such as drug trafficking, money

laundering, and human trafficking, though is not restricted to these activities.

Misuse of government power for other purposes, such as repression of political opponents and

general police brutality, is not considered political corruption. Neither are illegal acts by

private persons or corporations not directly involved with the government. The activities that

constitute illegal corruption differ depending on the country or jurisdiction. For instance,

some political funding practices that are legal in one place may be illegal in another. In some

cases, government officials have broad or ill-defined powers, which make it difficult to

distinguish between legal and illegal actions. Worldwide, bribery alone is estimated to involve

over 1 trillion US dollars annually. A state of unrestrained political corruption is known as a

Kleptocracy, literally meaning "rule by thieves‖. Some forms of corruption are distinguished

from bribery and other kinds of obvious personal gain. Campaign contributions are the prime

example. Even when they are legal, and do not constitute a quid pro quo, they have a

tendency to bias the process in favor of special interests and undermine public confidence in

the political institution. They corrupt the institution without individual members corrupted

themselves. A similar problem of corruption arises in any institution that depends on financial

support from people who have interests that may conflict with the primary purpose of the

institution. (Wikipedia, Political corruption)

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A political scandal is a kind of political corruption that is exposed and becomes a scandal, in

which politicians are accused of engaging in various illegal, corrupt, or unethical practices. A

political scandal can involve the breaking of the nation's laws or moral codes. (Wikipedia,

Political scandal)

Figure 1- corruption in Indian institutes

Corporate funding and buying of influence

Opportunities for purchasing influence in government are not confined to the electoral

process. Lobbyists who stand between the public and private sectors are in an ideal position to

broker corrupt transactions. It is perfectly legitimate for companies to expect access to

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politicians - as it is for NGOs or any other interest group. Where corruption comes into play is

when an interest group or corporation gains privileged access or undue influence of policy

makers, for example through offers of money or gifts. While federal agencies regulate

lobbying in many countries, regulations remain weak - even in Canada, where the recently

reformed lobbying law is often cited as model legislation. Lobbyists have to register if they

are paid specifically for the purpose of lobbying. In practice, paid corporate employees may

gather the information needed to lobby without acting as lobbyists, whilst corporate directors

and retired executives.

Until recently, the process was fairly straightforward; it was not only legal for companies

paying bribes to foreign public officials in order to secure contracts, but they received tax

breaks from their home governments for doing so. Since the entry into force of the OECD

anti-bribery convention, the situation has changed on paper at least. It is now illegal for

OECD-based companies to bribe foreign public officials (though, crucially, the prohibition

has not been extended to party officials). The process involved in securing a prosecution is so

cumbersome and costly, however, that few companies have been accused under the

Convention, and companies continue to pay bribes to foreign politicians and governments in

pursuit of deals, often covering them up by a smokescreen of intermediaries or layers of secret

bank accounts in tax havens. Corruption cuts across industries, but characteristics particular to

certain sectors may render them more vulnerable to the temptations of corruption. Sanctioned

secrecy and the lack of price transparency help perpetuate corruption in the arms trade. The

result is that corruption in the sector exists on a scale entirely disproportionate to its share of

world trade. The energy sector is another breeding ground of political corruption. Time and

again the pattern emerges of poor countries that discover immense oil or gas reserves and see

the resulting proceeds seep into the pockets of government officials and deal-brokers rather

than fund improved living standards for the majority. (TransparancyInternational, Corporate

funding and buying of influence)

In India also most of the political parties are controlled by corporations such as reliance and

other groups and the policies, both domestic and foreign, of the political parties are influenced

by this corporate. The pump money for election campaigns and all and help the parties to gain

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power and the taking advantage of them. Most of the corruption scandals that happened in

India can be cited as the example of political parties – corporate relationship.

Corruption scandals that shamed India

1948 jeep scandal: It was the first major corruption case in independent India. VK Krishna

Menon, the then Indian high commissioner to Britain, ignored protocols, and signed a Rs 80

lakh contract for the purchase of army jeeps with a foreign firm. While most of the money

was paid up front, just 155 jeeps landed, the then Prime Minister Nehru forced the

government to accept them. Govind Ballabh Pant the then Home Minister and the then

Government of Indian National Congress announced on September 30, 1955 that the Jeep

scandal case was closed for judicial inquiry ignoring suggestion by the Inquiry Committee led

by Ananthsayanam Ayyangar.

1981 Antulay Trust: AR Antulay, the then Chief Minister of Maharashtra, allegedly garnered

Rs 30 crore from businesses dependent on State resources.

1987 HDW commissions: The German submarine maker was blacklisted after allegations that

commissions worth Rs 420 crore had been paid in the 1987 deal in India.

1989 St. Kitts forgery: Documents were forged to allege that former Prime Minister VP Singh

was a beneficiary of his son Ajeya Singh's account in the First Trust Corp at St Kitts, with a

deposit of $21 million.

1980-90s Bofors scandal: It was a major corruption scandal in India in the 1980s and 1990s,

initiated by Congress politicians and implicating the Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi and several

others who were accused of receiving kickbacks from Bofors AB for winning a bid to supply

India's 155 mm field howitzer. The scale of the corruption was far worse than any that India

had seen before and directly led to the defeat of Gandhi's ruling Indian National Congress

party in the November 1989 general elections. The Swedish company paid INR640 million

(US$12 million) in kickbacks to top Indian politicians and key defense officials. The case

came into light during Vishwanath Pratap Singh's tenure as defense minister.

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1990 Airbus scandal: Indian Airline's signing of the Rs.2, 000-crore deal with Airbus instead

of Boeing caused a furore following the crash of an A-320 airliner.

What is politics?

Politics is an essential human activity – essential in building societies and communities based

on rules, laws and a balance of conflicting interests. Politics is complex and difficult. It

requires a high level of responsibility and commitment from citizens, political parties,

parliamentarians, government executives, the judiciary, the media, business, nongovernmental

organizations, and religious and educational institutions. Politics is the practice and theory of

influencing other people on a civic or individual level. More narrowly, it refers to achieving

and exercising positions of governance — organized control over a human community,

particularly a state. (Girardin, 2012)

Politics is the practice and theory of influencing other people on a civic or individual level.

More narrowly, it refers to achieving and exercising positions of governance — organized

control over a human community, particularly a state. A variety of methods are employed in

politics, which include promoting one's own political views among people, negotiation with

other political subjects, making laws, and exercising force, including warfare against

adversaries. Politics are exercised on a wide range of social levels, from clans and tribes of

traditional societies, through modern local governments, companies and institutions up to

sovereign states, to the international level. A political system is a framework which defines

acceptable political methods within a given society. Modern political discourse focuses on

democracy and the relationship between people and politics. It is thought of as the way we

choose government officials and make decisions about public policy. (Jenks, 1900)

Politics, in its broadest sense, is the activity through which people make, preserve and amend

the general rules under which they live. Although politics is also an academic subject it is then

clearly the study of this activity. Politics are thus inextricably linked to the phenomena of

conflict and cooperation. On the one hand, the existence of rival opinions, different wants,

competing needs and opposing interests guarantees disagreement about the rules under which

people live. On the other hand, people recognize that, in order to influence these rules or

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ensure that they are upheld, they must work with others – hence Hannah Arendt‘s definition

of political power as ‗acting in concert‘. This is why the heart of politics is often portrayed as

a process of conflict resolution, in which rival views or competing interests are reconciled

with one another. However, politics in this broad sense are better thought of as a search for

conflict resolution than as its achievement, as not all conflicts are, or can be, resolved.

Nevertheless, the inescapable presence of diversity and ensures that politics is an inevitable

feature of the human condition. (Heywood, 2006)

Politics is how people make, preserve and amend the general rules under which they live. It is

social; it is about working with others. This may involve diversity and conflict, but also a

willingness to co-operate and act collectively. Politics can be seen as a search for conflict

resolution and not simply its achievement, as not all conflicts are, or can be, resolved. The

people we elect make decisions that affect almost every aspect of our daily lives. (Politics in

daily life)

These include decisions about what happens in our schools and workplaces and what

recreational facilities we have, to national issues, like health and education, and global issues

like defense and the environment. It matters to each and every one of us who represents us at

local, national and international level; they reflect our values and principles. Political literacy

is all about understanding how politics shape our everyday lives. It is also about having the

motivation, skills and knowledge to be effectively involved in the decision-making process.

(Theories of politics.)

Politics in India

Politics in India take place within the framework of a constitution. India is a federal

parliamentary democratic republic in which the President of India is the head of state and the

Prime Minister of India is the head of government. India follows the dual polity that is a

double government consists of the union at the Centre and the states at the periphery. The

constitution defines the organization, powers and limitations of both central and state

governments, it is written, rigid and supreme that is the laws of the nation must conform to it.

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There is provision for a bicameral legislature consisting of an Upper House, i.e. Rajya Sabha,

which represent the states of the Indian federation and a lower house, i.e. Lok Sabha that

represents the people of India as a whole. Indian constitution provides for an independent

Judiciary headed by the Supreme Court to adhere and protect the constitution and to settle

disputes between the Centre and the states, or between the states, it can also nullify any

central or state laws if they are against the constitution. The governments, union or state, are

formed through elections held every five years by having the majority of members in their

respective lower houses (Lok Sabha in the center and Vidhan Sabha in the states).

(M.Laxmikanth, 2011)

Political Parties in India

The Indian political parties are categorized into two main types National level parties and

state level parties. The national parties are political parties which, participate in different

elections all over India. For example, Indian National Congress, Bhartiya Janata Party,

Bahujan Samaj Party, Samajwadi Party, Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India

(Marxist) and some other parties. State parties or regional parties are political parties which,

participate in different elections, but only within one state. For example Shiv Sena participates

only in Maharashtra, the Telegu Desam in Andra Pradesh, Akali Dal in Punjab, and Dravida

Munnetra Kazagham in Tamil Nadu and there are other such state parties. Some states have

more than one state party. For example, in Tamil Nadu, another important state party is All

India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazagham. Because of these long party names many party

names are abbreviated to their initials. Some the political parties have their origin from before

India's independence, for example, Indian National Congress, Akali Dal, National Conference

and some other parties. Some of these parties were either social or political organization

before India's independence and they became political parties after India's independence. But

many of the present parties were established after India's independence. Members, who split

from larger parties, established some of these parties. For example, in the 1960s, Lok Dal was

established by people who split from the Indian National Congress. Communist Party of India

(Marxist) was established after the split in the Communist Party of India and there are other

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such examples. As compared to other democratic countries, India has a large number of

political parties, it has been estimated that over 200 parties were formed after India became

independent in 1947. (Daniel, 2004)

Dominance of leaders in political parties in India

One feature of the political parties in India is that the parties are generally woven around their

leaders. The leaders actively playing a dominant role, the role of leadership can be transferred

and tends to take dynastic route. Such parties include both national and regional parties,

parties such as Indian National Congress has been led by Nehru-Gandhi dynasty since

independence, starting from Jawaharlal Nehru who dominated the Indian National Congress

and led it to victory in three consecutive elections. Then after a brief period his daughter

Indira Gandhi became prime minister. After the split in Indian National Congress in 1969 she

formed her own party Indian National Congress and remained the leader of the party until her

death in 1984. Then her son Rajiv Gandhi took the reins and after his death, his widow Sonia

Gandhi, the current leader of Indian National Congress took command. As a result of such

dominance, the leaders of political parties of the country tend to take an autocratic tone.

(CNN-IBN, 2014)

Ideology of political parties in India

One other major feature of the political parties is that, except the communist parties, most of

the political parties of India lack an ideological basis. Instead, political parties in India are

formed on the basis of race, religion, language, caste etc. thus the high number of political

parties. And therefore the real issues and problems of the people are often neglected. We find

that relation of any party with any other is not fixed on ideological position. Parties are always

ready to make compromises due to electoral compulsions and political requirements. The

coalitional arrangements change as per the requirements of the situation. (CNN-IBN, 2014)

The loss of values of ideology could be due to changing perceptions of the people, leaders and

the followers at the ground level. Ordinary people hardly bother about ideological quarrels.

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For both, people and followers, pragmatic politics have become the norm. Parties are

increasingly looked upon as a means to serve personal interests. Now we see fewer and fewer

leaders having fixed loyalties. Some political leaders change parties as per their convenience.

The parties to now follow an ―open door policy‖ in accepting leaders from other parties.

(Singh, 2012)

Corruption in India

Corruption in India is a major issue that adversely affects its economy. A study conducted by

Transparency International in the year 2005 found that more than 62% of Indians had

firsthand experience of paying bribes or influence peddling to get jobs done in public offices

successfully. In its study conducted in the year 2008, Transparency International reports about

40% of Indians had firsthand experience of paying bribes or using a contact to get a job done

in public office. In 2012 India has ranked 94th out of 176 countries in Transparency

International's Corruption Perceptions Index, tied with Benin, Colombia, Djibouti, Greece,

Moldova, Mongolia, and Senegal.

Most of the largest sources of corruption in India are entitlement programs and social

spending schemes enacted by the Indian government. Examples include Mahatma Gandhi

National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and National Rural Health Mission. Other daily

sources of corruption include India's trucking industry, which is forced to pay billions in

bribes annually to numerous regulations and police stops on its interstate highways. Indian

media have widely published allegations of corrupt Indian citizens stashing trillions of dollars

in Swiss banks. Swiss authorities, however, deny these allegations. The causes of corruption

in India include excessive regulations, complicated taxes and licensing systems, numerous

government departments, each with opaque bureaucracy and discretionary powers, monopoly

by government controlled institutions on certain goods and services delivery, and the lack of

transparent laws and processes. There are significant variations in the level of corruption as

well as in state government efforts to reduce corruption across India. (Transparency

International, 2008)

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Figure 2- Corruption index of different countries in the world

1992 Securities scam: Harshad Mehta manipulated banks and the stock market, pushing

shares like ACC from Rs.500 to Rs 10,000. The stacked-up claims of the brokers were a

staggering Rs 10,000 crore.

1996 Urea scam: The scam came into light after a shortage of fertilizer in 1996 was reported,

a clutch of businessmen in connivance with top officials of the National Fertilizer Limited,

fleeced the Government of Rs.133 crore for the import of urea, which was never delivered.

1996 Telecom fraud: Former Minister of State for Communication Sukh Ram was accused of

causing a loss of Rs.1.6 crore by favoring a Hyderabad-based firm in the purchase of telecom

equipment.

1996 Fodder scam: This scam broke out in 1996 in the town of Chaibasa, Bihar when the

animal husbandry department embezzled funds of around Rs 950 crore meant to purchase

cattle fodder, medicines and animal husbandry equipment in Bihar. Chief Minister Lalu

Prasad Yadav was forced to resign along with former Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra.

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2002-2003 Taj Heritage Corridor case: It is an alleged scam wherein 2002-2003, the then

Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Mayawati and a Minister in her Government, Nasimuddin

Siddiqui, were charged with corruption. The Taj Corridor project was intended to upgrade

tourist facilities near the Taj Mahal and was to be implemented during her tenure as Chief

Minister.

2009 Satyam Computer Services scandal: It was a corporate scandal that occurred in 2009

where Chairman Ramalinga Raju confessed that the company's accounts had been falsified.

The Global corporate community was shocked and scandalized when the Chairman of

Satyam, Raju resigned on January 7, 2009 and confessed that he had manipulated the

accounts by $1.47 Billion.

2002-2010 UP Food grain scam: Uttar Pradesh food grain scam also dubbed as the Mother of

all scams took place between the years 2002 and 2010. The grain worth Rs 35000 crore,

meant to be distributed via PDS to the poor under several schemes like Antyodaya Anna

Yojana, Jawahar Rozgar Yojana and Mid Day Meal Scheme for Below Poverty Line card

holders, was diverted to the open market. Some of it was traced to the Nepal and Bangladesh

borders, as in 2010 security forces seized Rs 1.17 crore worth of food grains like paddy and

pulses being smuggled to Nepal, another Rs 60.62 lakh worth of grains was confiscated on the

Indo-Bangladesh border. The scam first was exposed in 2003, in Gonda district during the

distribution of foodgrain meant for the Sampoorna Grameen Rozgar Yojana. After initially

ordering an inquiry into the scam Mulayam Singh withdrew it. The Special Investigation

Team) set up by the Mulayam Singh Government in 2006, lodged over 5,000 FIRs. The latest

of the scam series in India, initially referred as the 'UP rice scam' could be the biggest of them

all, even outdistancing the 2G Spectrum scam. The scam involves goofing up of rice worth Rs

20, 0000 crore. It was a scam that stretched to almost 7 years and 300 FIRs.

2001 Stock market scam: Stock market king, Ketan Parekh used UTI, Calcutta Stock

Exchange and his own index K-10 to swindle investors. When the scam was unearthed, it was

reported that he had wiped off over Rs.1 lakh crore of investor's market capital.

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2008 cash-for-votes scandal: It is a scandal, in which the UPA, the majority-holding

Parliamentary-party alliance led by Sonia Gandhi, allegedly bribed MPs in order to survive a

confidence vote on July 22, 2008. The vote in the Lok Sabha arose after the Communist Party

of India (Marxist) -led Left Front withdrew support from the Government, who wanted to

pursue an Indo-US nuclear deal.

2010 CWG scam: The Commonwealth Games is perhaps one of India's most well known

scam. Suresh Kalmadi who was the chairman of the Organizing Committee of the

Commonwealth Games was the main accused. It consisted of a number of corrupt deals

involving overstated contracts. Kalmadi also handed out a Rs 141 crore contract to Swiss

Timing for its timing equipment; the deal was inflated by Rs 95 crores. Less than 10 days

before the games, athletes were told to move into apartments that were shabby and

dilapidated. Kalmadi is currently out on bail.

2010 2G spectrum scam: The illegal undercharging by Government officials to various

telecom companies during the allocation of 2G licenses for cell phone subscriptions gave rise

to the 2G spectrum scam. According to the CAG, the scam amounts to about Rs 176,000

crore, whereas the CBI estimates it at Rs 30,984 crore. Politicians named as accused in the

chargesheet filed by the CBI include A Raja and MK Kanimozhi. The trial is being conducted

in Special CBI Court. It also involves Nira Radia, a political lobbyist.

2011 Antrix Devas deal: In 2011, G Madhavan Nair former ISRO chairman and three other

scientists were involved in a controversial deal between the Indian Space Research

Organization‘s commercial arm Antrix Corporation and Devas Multimedia. The deal involved

ISRO is leasing the S-band transponders on two satellites to Devas for broadcasting purposes.

A CAG report found that the department of space hid facts from the Cabinet.

2012 Uttar Pradesh NRHM scam: Under Mayawati's regime, this scam caused a loss of Rs

10,000 crore to the State. Politicians and senior bureaucrats are alleged to have siphoned off a

massive booty from the National Rural Health Mission, a Central Government program meant

to improve health care services in rural areas. At least five people have been murdered in an

attempt to cover up large-scale irregularities. Several former ministers of belonging to

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Bahujan Samaj Party are being investigated by the CBI. The NRHM scam came into the light

after two Chief Medical Officers were murdered in a broad daylight in Lucknow. Dr Vinod

Arya was killed in Oct 2010 and another CMO, Dr BP Singh was killed in April 2011. They

both were shot dead by motorcycle-riding killers, using the same weapon. Deputy-CMO YS

Sachan, who is thought to have had a role in the murders, was arrested, but died mysteriously

in jail. Subsequently, three other functionaries who were under investigation have also been

murdered or died under suspicious circumstances. In Feb 2012, Prime Minister Manmohan

Singh himself accused the Mayawati Government of misusing NRHM funds.

2012 Tatra scam: Bharat Earth Movers Ltd in collaboration with Tatra Vectra Motors had

produced over 7000 trucks to the Army. When General VK Singh took over as the Army

Chief, he refused to authorize the purchase of trucks after he was offered a bribe. The scam

was estimated at Rs 750 crore.

2012 Coal mining controversy: Also called Coalgate is one of the well known scams, the

scam where the UPA Government reported a loss of Rs 185,591 crore. The CAG has accused

the Centre of giving undue benefits to companies by distributing 155 coal acres in an arbitrary

manner instead of auctioning to the highest bidder during 2004-2009.

2013 Railway promotion scam: Infamously known as Railgate, it involves former Railway

Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal and his nephew, Vijay Singla for allegedly accepting a bribe of

Rs 90 lakh from a Railway Board member. The central investigative agency, CBI on June 4,

questioned the former Railway Minister over his involvement. Kumar, however, has denied

his involvement saying Singla acted on his own.

2013 Saradha Group chit fund scam: Earthed recently, the Saradha Group chit fund scam

caused a loss of Rs 20,000 crore to the exchequer. The scam has also led to many suicides

across the State.

2013 Vodafone tax scandal: The scandal involves Rs 11, 000 crore tax dispute. The dispute

also names Union Minister Kapil Sibal because of the Law Ministry's U-turn to agree to

conciliation in Vodafone tax case.

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2013 Agusta Westland chopper deal scam: This is one of the most recent of the cases in India,

which has shamed the country. The deal amounts to Rs 74.5 crore. According to various

reports, the investigation into the Italian firm Finmeccanica, which started more than a year

ago, is one of a series of corruption scandals in defense deal-making in India. (NITI, 2013)

India’s Black Money Problem

While corruption scandals have made the headlines in India recently, the underlying issues

have been deeply entrenched in the bureaucratic and political system for decades. Politicians

and bureaucrats in India certainly have amassed a great deal of private wealth, much of which

is black — deposited, untaxed, in overseas accounts. This results in a significant loss of

revenue for India, with some estimates reporting about $419 billion in taxable income and

profits being laundered out of the country over the past decade. This loss of revenue stems

largely from a treaty India has with Mauritius. ―Indians can deposit funds in Mauritius bank

accounts tax free, allowing politicians to ‗round trip‘ their money — it comes back in India as

the white money through fake projects or to fund their election campaigns,‖. As a result, this

tiny island has become India‘s largest financier, which Pratap believes should signal a major

red flag that corruption is taking place. In fact, last year, facing mounting international

pressure, the Indian government adopted a tax code that will close this loophole for untaxed

overseas deposits. While this reform is encouraging, the new tax code was supposed to be

implemented in 2013, but it has already been pushed back to 2014, which means India will

continue to lose sizable amounts of revenue for at least another year. (Hanna, Fighting

corruption in India, 2014)

Vote buying – How corruption affects election

One of the most blatant manifestations of political corruption is when politicians bribe voters

directly. The practice - proscribed by most national legislations - is fuelled by money that is

not properly accounted for at best, from criminal sources at worst. It is difficult to assess how

widespread the practice of vote buying is. The term encompasses many kinds of inducements,

such as the distribution of food, clothing or public services, in addition to direct monetary

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exchanges. Surveys give a first approximation of how frequently votes are ‗bought‘ in some

countries. Vote buying tends to be carried out where the parties are weak, with elections

centered on candidates rather than parties, and where the traditions of patronage are

engrained. A number of studies suggest that it is poor people who are most often targeted with

offers to buy their votes. This connection between the crimes of vote buying and of misuse of

public funds is an area ripe for study: the correlation between public expenditure patterns and

electoral cycles could yield interesting data. Some chapters have already begun to monitor

this practice. (TransparancyInternational, Vote buying )

Political parties as well as corporate are involved in this kind of scams and they use the

money that they made through this illegal activity for various other activities. Politicians and

their aides in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh admitted to violating election law to influence

voters in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls through payments in the form of cash, goods, or services,

according to a revealing cable sent to the State Department by Frederick J. Kaplan, Acting

Principal Officer of the U.S. Consulate-General in Chennai. In conversations with a visiting

consulate team, Karti Chidambaram of the Congress, M. Patturajan, confidant of Union

Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers M.K. Alagiri and former Mayor of Madurai, and

Member of Parliament Assaduddin Owaisi of the Majlis-e-Ittenhadul Muslimeen spoke

without inhibition about how they, their principals, or their parties made payments to voters

during the election campaign. In a cable sent on May 13, 2009 through Wiki Leaks, Mr.

Kaplan detailed the role and impact of money power in corrupting the electoral process,

drawing from information gathered from a variety of sources in the field: Bribes from

political parties to voters, in the form of cash, goods, or services, are a regular feature of

elections in South India. Poor voters expect bribes from political candidates, and candidates

find various ways to satisfy voter expectations. From paying to dig a community well to

slipping cash into an envelope delivered in the morning newspaper, politicians and their

operatives admitted to violating election rules to influence voters. The money to pay the

bribes comes from the proceeds of fund-raising, which often crosses into political corruption.

Although the precise impact of bribery on voter behavior is hard to measure, it no doubt

swings at least some elections, especially the close races. (Hiddleston, 2011)

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Political Ethics

Political is the practice of making moral judgments about political action, and the study of

that practice. As a field of study, it is divided into two branches, each with distinctive

problems and with different though overlapping literatures. One branch, the ethics of the

process, focuses on public officials and the methods they use. The other branch, the ethics of

policy (or ethics and public policy) concentrate on judgments about policies and laws. Both

draw on moral and political philosophy, democratic theory and political science. But political

ethics constitutes a free standing subject in its own right. Most writers on the subject do not

try to apply foundational moral theories, but rather work with mid-level concepts and

principles that more closely reflect the considerations that political agents could take into

account in making decisions and policies. (Thompson, 2013)

Political ethics is the practice of making moral judgments about political action and political

agents. It covers two areas. The first is the ethics of the process which deals with public

officials and the methods they use the second area, the ethics of policy concern judgments

about policies and the law

Niccolò Machiavelli is often considered the founding father of the first area of political ethics.

He believed that a political leader may be required to commit acts that would be wrong if

done by private. In contemporary democracies, this idea has been reformed as the problem of

dirty hands, described most influentially by Michael Walzer, who argues that the problem

creates a paradox: the politician must sometimes do ―wrong to do right ―The political uses

violence to prevent greater violence, but his act is still wrong even if justified. Walzer‘s view

has been criticized. Some critics object that either the politician is justified or not. If justified,

there is nothing wrong, though he may feel guilty. Others say that some of the acts of violence

that Walzer would allow are never justified, no matter what the ends. Dennis Thompson has

argued that in a democracy, citizens should hold the leader responsible, and therefore if the

act is justified their hands are dirty too. He also shows that in large political organizations it is

often not possible to tell who is actually responsible for the outcomes—a problem known as

the problem of many hands.

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Political ethics not only permits leaders to do things that would be wrong in private life, but

also requires them to meet higher standards than would be necessary in private life. They

may, for example, have less of a right of privacy than do ordinary citizens, and no right to use

their office for personal profit. The major issues here concern conflict of interest.

In the other area of political ethics, the key issues are not the conflict between means and ends

but the conflicts among the ends themselves. For example, in the question of global justice,

the conflict is between the claims of the nation state and citizens on one side and the claims of

all citizens of the world. Traditionally, priority has been given to the claims of nations, but in

recent year‘s thinkers known as cosmopolitans have pressed the claims of all citizens of the

world. (Beitz, 1999)

Political ethics deal not mainly with ideal justice, however, but with realizing moral values in

democratic societies where citizens disagree about what ideal justice is. In a pluralist society,

how, if at all, can governments justify a policy of progressive taxation, affirmative action, the

right to abortion, universal health care, and the like? Political ethics are also concerned with

moral problems raised by the need for political compromise, whistle blowing, civil

disobedience, and criminal punishment.

Some critics argue that ethics has no place in politics. If politicians are to be effective in the

real world, they cannot be bound by moral rules. They have to pursue the national interest.

However, Walzer points out that if the realists are asked to justify their claims, they will

almost always appeal to moral principles of their own. Another kind of criticism comes from

those who argue that we should not pay so much attention to politicians and policies, but

should instead look more closely at the larger structures of society where the most serious

ethical problems lie Advocates of political ethics respond that while structural injustice should

not be ignored, too much emphasis on structures neglects the human agents who are

responsible for changing them. (Girardin, 2012)

Ethics in politics and its extent

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Ethics in politics matter more than ever. It does not strive for an ideal or perfect, but merely

optimal politics. Ethics adds a decisive value to politics by securing fair treatment of political

stake holders, stressing equity and fairness, reminding us that the limitation of power is

essential in politics, and adding a long-term perspective. By contrast, impunity, arbitrariness

and cruelty cannot count on wide support, either in individual societies or in the community

of nations. Key for politics is to limit power by constitutions, checks and balances, an

independent judiciary, devolution, delegation, political competition and mechanisms of

accountability. Left to itself, power tends to remove or reduce limitations. Not limiting power

paves the way to autocracy and dictatorship. The core ethical value in politics is justice,

interpreted as fairness and reciprocity. Six cardinal values articulate justice on six key axes:

equity, freedom and responsibility, security and peace, unity along with diversity, solidarity

without dependence, sustainability.

A sound politics finds some optimal level of achievement on each axis, reaching a healthy

balance rather than an average of minimal and maximal. Overall consistency is part of sound

ethics in politics, resulting in more stable and less erratic politics. Ethical assessment of

politics may be summarized in the following question: To what extent are laws and rules,

political institutions and decisions contributing to and producing more justice, deeper fairness,

more sustainability, greater responsibility. Ethics in politics is measured by consequences and

not primarily declared intentions. Ethics in politics reminds us that policies, political

programs and actions to meet the challenges faced by societies, humanity and the Earth

cannot be limited to technocratic approaches. Know-how is indeed necessary, but not

sufficient. Goals and long-term objectives are assessed against values. The interests of the

Earth and of future generations are taken as requirements.

Ethics is at the heart of a constructive tension between values and interests, keeping interests

as well as values on the agenda rather than preferring one against the other or making them

mutually exclusive. The way conflicts are settled and compromises shaped is strengthened by

referring to the six cardinal values, assessing in particular how each is taken into

consideration and realized. Lasting and sustainable agreements are based on shared values

combined with common interests. The interdependence of today‘s and tomorrow‘s world calls

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for shared values beyond parochial or short-term interests. Convergence rather than strict

alignment between principles, laws, systems, institutions and decisions is the goal. In a

fluctuating and mostly unpredictable environment, ethics in politics cannot confine itself to

implementing principles. Overall consistency and broad convergence is what matters, rather

than a mechanical cascading. Ethics in politics considers economics and in particular

economic limitations and resources as essential reference points for any political priority

claiming to be realistic. It seeks also to highlight sound choices related to economic policy

and establish true costs. It is not enough to copy and paste ethics from the personal to the

political domain or to confine ethics in politics to the honest intentions of rulers.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions; like anyone else, rulers may do dreadful

things with a good heart and a clear conscience .Ethics in politics takes advantage of the

individual commitments of rulers, judges, civil servants and citizens. It takes into account

pressure from associations and stresses stakeholder responsibility and commitment. Groups

lobby to build a wide platform that may subsequently enjoy social acceptance. Shared

platforms of values among stakeholders are critical, even if the government sets the

framework, guides the negotiations, and acts as leader, taking advantage of good practices

pioneered by associations. Human rights are built on a solid ethical foundation and translate

values into limits not to be exceeded and opposable rights. Ethics in politics is more than

human rights. It is about negotiable policies, programs, and agency. It refers to future

consequences and overall sustainability.

Ethics in politics is about process and agency as well as vision and political or programmatic

objectives. Trust and confidence are built incrementally through processes that are respectful

of stakeholders and open to dissenters and assessed jointly. Systems and processes are

expected to match values. Consistency minimizes political risks. Democracy is better able

than other systems to take into account the ethical requirement of politics. A functioning

democracy is accountable and cannot but listens to citizen expectations. Ethics in politics

requires regular evaluation of consequences, learning from experience how ethics works out

in practice and taking corrective or adaptive measures. Staying alert and constantly asking

questions is a political advantage. (Girardin, 2012)

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Balancing Politics and Ethics

These successes at the state level are encouraging signs that real change in India is happening

thanks to the determination of various government officials who are serious about combating

corruption. ―The system in India is good if you have the right person at the helm. We don‘t

need new institutions, and we have fantastic human resources, but often, politicians ensure

their financial backers are given high government positions, rather than well-trained

bureaucrats.‖ Consequently, in order for the entire nation to experience progress as a whole,

strong leadership is needed at the national level, which Alphons believes is currently lacking.

He describes the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, as an ―honest man,‖ but lacking

―the strength to tackle corruption head on.‖ In 2007, major licenses for airwaves on the

mobile spectrum were unfairly allocated to thirteen companies with close ties to government

officials. The Prime Minister wrote a letter to the telecoms minister, Andimuthu Raja,

informing him that this process of allocation was not transparent and needed to be changed,

but Raja disregarded the warning, and Prime Minister Singh took no further action. Alphons

explained that the Prime Minister‘s excuse for furthering pursuing Raja is that ―he is

dependent on the support of ten or twelve parties — the Congress party doesn‘t have a

majority,‖ and Prime Minister Singh did not want to risk alienating members of the coalition.

(Hanna, Fighting corruption in India, 2014)

States Combating Corruption

Without enough revenue, the national government has been unable to adequately fund many

of its welfare programs; however, several states have managed to fight corruption and execute

innovative programs that have improved people‘s standard of living. K.J. Alphons, now a

Bhartiya Janata Party Member of Parliament, spent twenty-seven years in the Indian

Administrative Service doing just that. As a district collector for Kottayam, a district in the

state of Kerala, Mr. Alphons began a literacy program that was free from outside monetary

funding and, thus, corruption. He said, ―Without any government funding, my administration

rallied 14,000 unpaid volunteers to teach people to read.‖ By June 1989, Kottayam was

declared the first city in India with a 100 percent literacy rate, and the methodology used

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became the model for the national literacy program, founded soon after. He went on to apply

a similar methodology to immunize every child in his district, and in 1990, Kottayam ranked

higher on quality of health indices than the U.S.

Other politicians have also led successful campaigns to bolster people‘s standard of living and

reduce corruption. In the state of Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, a member of the Janata

Dal party, has significantly reigned in a once rampant crime rate by increasing the size of the

police force and fast tracking the successful prosecution of over 79,000 criminals since he

took office in 2005.

Chhattisgarh, another state in India, has also seen standards of living increased by eliminating

corruption. Formerly possessing the most corrupt grain distribution system in the country, in

2003, the state introduced a program that sends a picture of a grain truck the moment it leaves

the distribution center via cell phones to every person in the village, along with a message

stating exactly how long it will take the truck to arrive. This technology has been so effective

at reducing corruption that the World Bank recently declared Chhattisgarh‘s distribution

system to be one of the best in the world. (Hanna, Fighting Corruption in India, 2013)

Moving Beyond Scandal

States across India have proved that they can reduce and even eliminate corruption, that they

can implement programs that produce tangible benefits and services for people, and that

politicians and bureaucrats can work transparently to improve economic standards. Alphons,

Kumar, and others have shown that strong, honest leadership is crucial to fighting corruption

and improving the lives of their constituents, and this needs to be translated to the national

level. Despite the current government‘s less than zealous attacks on corruption, there are signs

at the national level that it will not be tolerated. On February 2, 2012, the Supreme Court

cancelled all of the licenses that were unfairly allocated in the Telecom scandal. With a strong

legal system, prosecuting those who do not want to do business fairly is possible. Reforming

the tax code is another step in the right direction, though it needs to be implemented quickly,

and changing the election laws so that the monetary barriers for candidacy are lower could

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help citizens outside the ruling elite win more seats in Parliament and hopefully reduce

corruption. From Kerala to Bihar to Chattisgarh, as well as in other states, the people of India

have shown they will support leaders who fight corruption, so it is time for the national

government to stand against those who want to steal from the country and instead stand with

the people. (Hanna, Fighting Corruption in India, 2013)

Aam Aadmi Party - New hope?

Aam Aadmi Party is an Indian political party, formally launched on 26 November 2012. It

came into existence following differences between the activists Arvind Kejriwal and Anna

Hazare regarding whether or not to politicize the popular India Against Corruption movement

that had been demanding a Jan Lokpal Bill since 2011. Hazare preferred that the movement

should remain politically unaligned while Kejriwal felt the failure of the agitation route

necessitated a direct political involvement.

The AAP has led several protests since its formation. Among these was a campaign against an

alleged nexus between government and private corporations relating to price rises for

electricity and water in Delhi. Another saw the party demanding justice for victims of sexual

harassment and rape, including the introduction of a stronger anti-rape law. The party's first

electoral test was in the 2013 Delhi legislative assembly election, from which it emerged as

the second-largest party, winning 28 of the 70 seats. With no party obtaining an overall

majority, the AAP formed a minority government with conditional support from the Indian

National Congress.

The party's name reflects the phrase Aam Aadmi, or "common man", whose interests Kejriwal

proposed to represent. A party constitution was adopted on 24 November 2012, when a

National Council comprising 320 people and a National Executive of 23 were also formed.

Both the Council and the Executive were expected to have more members in due course, with

the intention being that all districts and all classes of people would have a voice. Various

committees were to be formed to draft proposals for adoption by the party in a process that

was expected to take several months. Although one aim was to limit nepotism, there were

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complaints at this initial meeting that the selection of people invited to attend was itself an

example of such practices The party was formally launched in Delhi on 26 November[10]

and

in March 2013 it was registered as a political party by the Election Commission of India.

The AAP says that the promise of equality and justice that forms a part of the constitution of

India and of its preamble has not been fulfilled and that the independence of India has

replaced enslavement to an oppressive foreign power with that to political elite. The party

claims that the common people of India remain unheard and unseen except when it suits the

politicians. It wants to reverse the way that the accountability of government operates and has

taken an interpretation of the Gandhian concept of swaraj as a tenet. It believes that through

swaraj the government will be directly accountable to the people instead of higher officials.

The swaraj model lays stress on self governance, community building and decentralization.

Kejriwal has said that the AAP refuses to be guided by ideologies and that they are entering

politics to change the system: "We are aam aadmis‖. If we find our solution in the left we are

happy to borrow it from there. If we find our solution in the right, we are happy to borrow it

from there."

Though AAP has not identified itself with any specific ideology, some thinkers have seen

similarities in ideology of AAP. Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary

Prakash Karat has articulated in his party organ People‘s Democracy that the virtues that

claimed by AAP of clean image, incorruptibility, denial of perks and privileges of power, and

funding based on people‘s contributions and its agenda of social justice, democratization and

decentralization of power has long been the Communist program. However, he has also

observed that communist party`s stand on communalism and attack on the communal

Hindutva agenda were absent in AAP. (Wikipedia, Aam Aadmi Party)

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