oppn parties Asset Disclosure By Government Employees Needed

News Snippets

  • PM Modi says that if Congress is voted to power in Haryana, the state will face the same financial problems that Himachal is facing under the party's rule
  • Competition Commission of India has said that smartphone majors are colluding with e-commerce firms to exclusively launch products on their platforms in alleged breach of anti-trust laws
  • Supreme Court rules that delay in claiming compensation for land acquisition by the government is no excuse to deny it as it is the duty of the government to pay the compensation.
  • PM Modi said that terrorism was breathing its last in J&K
  • Conbgress has alleged that Sebi chief Madhabi Buch traded in listed securities and invested in China-focused funds during her tnure at the agency
  • India to sing $4bn Predator drone deal with US
  • Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has disclosed that the opposition parties backed him as Prime Minister in place of Narendra Modi but he refused.
  • Noted economist Ajit Ranade removed as VC of Gokhale Institute of Politics & Economics in Pune due to not fulfilling eligibility criteria related to teaching experience
  • Chess Olympiad: Arjun Erigaisi wins his fourth consecutive game
  • Asian Champions Trophy hockey- India beat Pakistan 2-1 in a tough match to remain unbeaten in the group stage. They will meet Korea in the semifinals
  • Davis Cup: S Balaji and R Ramanathan lose, India 0-2 down on first day
  • Delhi Police arrested Sangram Dass, said to be the kingpin of an inter-state new-born baby tafficking racket, from Kolkata after a 1500-km chase
  • NC leader Omar Abdullah alleged that the B|JP was forging secret deals with some regional parties and independents to form the government in J&K
  • Rajasthan Police has devised a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), as directed by the Rajasthan HC, to help married and live-in couples facing threats from families and others. It icludes helplines and safe houses
  • A 3-storey building collapsed in the busy Transport Nager area in Lucknow killing 8 and injuring 28 others
Junior doctors do not agree to meet Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee without live-streaming of meeting /////// CBI arrests ex-principal of R G Kar College Sandip Ghosh and OC of Tala PS in Kolkata, Abhijit Mondal' for destrcution of evidence in the rape-murder case
oppn parties
Asset Disclosure By Government Employees Needed

By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2016-07-29 12:04:27

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator.
picture courtesy: the economic times

If corruption has to be weeded out in any country, the process has to start at the top. It is a fact that corruption at the grassroots often stems from the attitude of those at the highest levels. The NDA government has displayed a zero tolerance policy towards corruption and big ticket scams have almost vanished. But lower level corruption is still endemic. Nothing moves in India without greasing the palms of those in authority. Even a lowly peon expects his cut. Officers in government offices often display helplessness as the peon does not bring the required file to their table if the party concerned does not pay him a ‘bakshish’. It is not a secret that “upar ki kamai” is often the status symbol of government employees. It is against this backdrop that the decision of the government to dilute the Lokpal Act by amending the clause that mandated for its employees to declare their own and their family’s assets by July 31 by keeping it in abeyance is particularly disturbing.

The disclosure of assets of self and family by government employees is very much needed to identify such persons who are maintaining a lifestyle clearly at odds with their known sources of income. Those government employees who are not corrupt but have got genuine assets either through bequests or earning capacities of other family members should have no problems with this disclosure. It is the corrupt who will raise a hue and cry regarding this. Although there can be no direct correlation between assets and corruption, it is definitely a pointer and can be used for further investigations. This is what is troubling corrupt employees. The government should not give in to such demands and if it serious about making India corruption-free, it should get this disclosure done in the near future.