By the time this issue reaches you, the elections of 2014 will be in their last phase and all of us will be waiting for the results, on 16th May. Over the past few months we have witnessed vitriolic campaigns, run by all the political parties. As in the past, emotive issues have been raised, though speeches have also been laced with the promise of development. While this election had many similarities with elections of the past, in some ways it was distinct and different. There was a large contingent of first-time voters, social media played a significant role, and there was the presence of a party which at least promised to represent the “Aam Aadmi.” These factors cumulatively may make a difference in the outcome.
Whichever government assumes power, (and one hopes that we will have a stable one), will have to meet the rising aspirations of the people. What should citizens expect from the new government? What we need is a government that “governs” and people feel that they are governed. To put it in one line we want a government in which the people of this country can place their trust.
When will such trust be created? That can happen when the government acts fairly, transparently and is accountable for its actions. These are the basic minimum attributes of governance, which have seen a steep fall in the last decade. How unfair is the administrative arm of the government will be apparent from the scathing comment of the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal in the Bharti Airtel’s case. The Tribunal observed “….If an action of the assessing officer is so blatantly unreasonable that such seasoned senior officers well versed with functioning of judicial forums, as the learned departmental representatives are, cannot even go through the convincing motions of defending the same before us, such unreasonable conduct of the assessing officer deserves to be scrutinised seriously. At a time when evolving societal pressures demand a greater degree of accountability in governance also, it does no good to the judicial institutions to watch such situations as helpless spectators. If it is indeed a case of frivolous addition, someone should be accountable for the resulting undue hardship to the taxpayer, rather than being allowed to walk away with a subtle, though easily discernible admission to the effect that, yes it was a frivolous addition ……. The paragraph aptly describes the conduct of the government. Those who do business expect the government of the day to act equitably, fairly. While no one denies the right of a sovereign country to collect tax, would it be wrong for businesses beyond Indian shores to expect that we will have a fair, stable and consistent tax regime?
The actions must not only be fair but they must be transparent. Let us take the legislative process as an example. The Direct Tax Code Bill, brought in with fanfare, has been hanging fire for over 4 years. Innumerable man-hours have been invested (or wasted?) in the stupendous effort of understanding, analysing the Bill and its versions to make representations thereon. After all these efforts, one feels frustrated if one does not know the outcome/response to the representation. Having received representations/suggestions, reasons as to why some of them are not accepted are never made public. While one appreciates that it is the government’s prerogative to legislate, it is equally important that the stakeholders for whom the legislation is made participate in the process and truly feel a part of it.
Accountability is the most significant parameter of good governance. One can give innumerable illustrations of how citizens feel slighted when there is no politician or bureaucrat who takes responsibility for their actions. In the past, in our country taking responsibility for actions of one’s juniors was the norm. Such politicians/bureaucrats are now a forgotten breed, the South Korean premiere being an exception. Let us take the recent case of the deletion of a huge number of voters from the electoral rolls, with Maharashtra witnessing this problem on a very large scale. It is possible that the election commission with its limited machinery acted in an absolute bona fide manner. The problem possibly was on account of software glitches, callous data entry or equally careless data verification. Whatever be the reason, the right of franchise of an Indian citizen was lost. It may be virtually impossible to redress the same but the person responsible must be held accountable. It is only if this happens that events like this will not recur.
To ensure that the government of the day acts equitably, fairly transparently and to hold it accountable we must have a robust, consistent and responsive judicial system. We must see that justice is delivered and delivered quickly. Justice delayed is justice denied may sound a clichéd phrase, but it is true. We cannot have the situation where after more than a decade, a trial of a simple hit and run case of an eminent actor has to restart on account of a legal lacuna. Such delay virtually negates the value of any justice that may be delivered. The government that assumes office will have to address these problems, on a war footing.
Finally, if we are going to ensure that democracy survives and flourishes in our country , we the citizens and particularly the educated class will have to do their might. In the words of Alexander Woolcott, “I am tired of hearing it said that democracy doesn’t work. Of course it doesn’t work. We’re supposed to work it!” So, my fellow citizens, put your shoulder to the wheel of democracy and make it run!
