dna edit: Tainted and dented

Only an incorrigible optimist would like to believe that a new dispensation at the Centre is key to a radically different India. If there had truly been a political will to clean the system, and rid it of corruption, then the efforts of the Law Commission — to get all major political parties to agree to poll reforms — would have achieved the desired results. In the poorly attended seminar, conducted by the Commission recently to underscore the importance of keeping charge-sheeted politicians out of the electoral fray, the absence of the Congress, BJP and AAP said it all.

According to the Association of Democratic Rights and Maharashtra Election Watch, the first phase of elections in the state on April 10 saw 14 out of 20 candidates, fielded by the Congress, NCP, Shiv Sena and BJP, facing criminal charges. The nationwide figures for the same phase turned out to be equally depressing: 38 out of 80 of the BJP, 21 out of 72 of the Congress and 15 out of 78 candidates of the AAP had declared criminal cases against them.

The fifth phase on April 17 had 279 tainted politicians — the maximum till now. The agencies on the look-out for charge-sheeted politicians consider non bailable offence  attracting a maximum of five years of punishment as the yardstick.

The current trend is in keeping with the previous Lok Sabha where more than 150 MPs in the 543-seat House have criminal antecedents. Make no mistake: Money and muscle power dictate Indian politics, and grand talks about winds of change are hogwash.

A lot is at stake in these elections where money plays a pivotal role. A vigilant Election Commission notwithstanding, parties and candidates are resorting to all sorts of unfair means — fudging campaign expenses is just one of them. This time alone, close to Rs30,000 crore will be spent, and not all of it is squeaky clean.

Yet, one is tempted to believe time and again that the system is capable of reinventing itself if voters exercise their franchise in a responsible manner. A government survey in Maharashtra offers that hope when 87.5 per cent of the respondents said they vote because they feel it is their duty and right, while 33.75 per cent are motivated by a candidate’s image and record. But, democracy is also about contradictions with a notoriously fickle electorate reacting in inexplicable ways. The ADR study, based on the self-sworn affidavits of candidates, shows that Maharashtra has the highest number of aspirants with declared criminal and serious criminal cases. In the latest round, one in six aspirants from Mumbai and Thane faces criminal charges.

Had it not been for the Supreme Court order — bitterly opposed by parties — taking a strong stand against the criminalisation of politics, a clean-up drive would have been impossible. As of now, trials of all pending criminal cases against legislators have to be completed within a year. The Law Commission’s aborted attempt is an overwhelming indication that politicians won’t take it upon themselves to clean the house. The status quo suits them for a host of reasons, not least of all the prospect of milking the system for personal gains. The AAP, which has fired public imagination with its radical brand of politics, too seemed to have fallen into that trap.

In the rough and tumble of electoral politics, it’s always the survival of the fittest. Clean contestants stand a slim chance against vested interests.