[….liberal and Gandhian groups and NGOs have mounted anti-corruption campaigns against the state. They have urged mass appeals, petition drives, and hunger strikes against corruption and for more accountability–and debates on the focus, and effectiveness, of such appeals and tactics have broken out throughout the country. Revolutionaries have challenged the “democratic” claims of the state, and have exposed the fundamentally corrupt, undemocratic, and bourgeois nature of the entire state machinery. The Maoists, in particular, while uniting with the popular hatred of the corruption, have argued that it cannot be isolated from the undemocratic nature of the society, and both features must be addressed by mass struggles. Here is the statement of the Communist Party of India (Maoist) on these questions. — Frontlines ed.]
Communist Party of India (Maoist) Press Release
13 April, 2011: Intensify Mass Struggles To Put An End To Institutionalized Corruption!
In recent times, corruption has once again come to the forefront as a main issue with the exposure of massive scams like 2G spectrum, Commonwealth games, Adarsh housing society, Karnataka land scams, S-Band spectrum scam. Workers, peasants, adivasis, dalits, women, and urban middle class – all classes and sections of the society are expressing their deep discontent and anguish. Recently we saw great support to the hunger strike of Anna Hazare, which is the direct consequence of the widespread discontent in the people against corruption, corrupt political parties and their leaders. Though the demand for hunger strike is Jan Lokpal Bill, the aspiration of the people is to completely wipe out corruption.
It would be innocence, if anyone feels that by setting up a committee to frame Lokpal bill and by selecting half of the committee members from civil society would itself finds a solution. In fact, lack of rules and laws is not the cause for endless and deep-ridden corruption. Way back from jeep scam, Lockheed’s airplane deal to late Rajiv Gandhi’s Bofors deals, our country has seen many a scams starting from a few million rupees to trillions of rupees. Not only main parliamentary parties like Congress and BJP, leaders and ministers of all other national and regional parliamentary parties like RJD, BSP, SP, DMK, AIADMK, TDP and hand in glove beaurocrats have a long history of corrupt practices. By proper implementation of the existing laws in the country and by the proper functioning of anti-corruption wings, scams like these can be prevented to a grate extent and those responsible for these can be severely punished. In the last 64 years history of ‘independent’ India, we don’t find a single incidence, where corrupt politicians, ministers, heads of corporate houses and beauraucrats have been punished. Due to pressure from people or opposition parties, even if arrested in some rare cases, by prolonging investigation and diluting of the charges, they get scot-free without any stringent punishment or with nominal punishment. This is because; the judiciary of this country is also an inseparable part of this exploitative state machinery. None can be under the illusion to end corruption through these laws and court rooms. Continue reading →