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C. P. Belliappa's Column

Corruption Vs. Scams

“There is a difference between corruption and scams. Corruption is societal and is all pervading in our country.

Scams, on the other hand, involve an unholy nexus between the politician, bureaucrat and the businessman. Lokpal Bill which has been languishing for 42 years is aimed at eliminating scams. Compared to everyday corruption, scams involve siphoning of hundreds of thousands of crores. Scams are nothing but systematic looting of people’s money by the very people we have elected who are expected to work for the benefit of the citizens of the country. It is quite obvious why the Lokpal Bill was stone-walled by the politicians for four decades. Now that Anna Hazare has mobilised the people to rise and demand the Bill be passed, we find spin-doctors in the government trying to scuttle the process by discrediting the members of civil society who are in the forefront of this movement.

If the Lokpal Bill gets derailed once again, then scams such as 2G, CWG, Adarsh, Bofors, Hasan Ali, Swiss accounts etc., etc., will continue with impunity. In my opinion, scams are the greater evil compared to corruption. If scams are curbed, and our political system is cleansed, the trickle-down-effect will automatically bring down corruption in our society. We need a strong Lokpal Bill. Anna Hazare and his team have already done a great deal of ground-work on this issue and should be allowed to complete the task. The smear campaign unleashed by those interested in scuttling the Bill will soon face the displeasure of the people. “

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