Lokpal Bill – No magic bullet

There is so much of hype in the media about the Anna Hazare led movement to enact a Lokpal bill aimed at rooting out corruption from our system. The movement found enormous support from the public, which surprised Mr. Hazare too. But I am not really surprised. The fight for any cause touted by the media as a ‘good cause’ finds lot of support in India, only to be forgotten quickly.

Popular perception seems to be that this bill, once passed into a law, will be the magic bullet which will eradicate corruption from our system. I am not that optimistic about the bill. Let me tell you why.

The bill, which is being drafted now, proposes to create autonomous institutions which can impartially and quickly probe allegations of corruption and punish those found guilty. In essence, the bill aims to discourage corruption by inducing ‘fear of punishment’ among the corrupt.  Contrary to popular perception, fear of punishment is not the best deterrent against corruption. Take the case of China where trials are quick and punishments are severe. But corruption is still very high in China. With our judicial system where trials go on for a very long time, I am afraid the Lokpal bill will only help to increase the number of ‘pending cases’ manifold. So we should ideally try to emulate more liberal countries like the Nordic nations which have very low levels of corruption.

Most of us think corruption is limited to the government alone. No, corruption is everywhere in India. A taxi driver who demands twice the normal charge from a desperate passenger is also corrupt. A movie exhibitor who sells tickets at double the price on the release day is also corrupt. A doctor who prescribes unnecessary tests and medicines to his/her patients is also corrupt. There is a very thin line separating corruption and profiteering. Of course, such people also extended their support to Mr. Hazare’s cause.

We can devise better ways to eradicate corruption only when we understand certain traits of human nature which make us susceptible to corruption and the circumstances that are conducive to corruption.

If there is an opportunity to be corrupt i.e. to benefit through unethical means, humans will eventually become corrupt. In other words, probity is largely a result of lack of opportunity to be corrupt. (I am trying to generalize here. There will always be men and women of impeccable integrity. But such people are exceptions.) Also if there is an alternative to get things done without paying a bribe, humans will choose the alternative rather than pay the bribe.

Our system is so flawed that there are innumerable circumstances where corruption can flourish. Each circumstance offers plenty of opportunities for a person to become corrupt. Let me attempt categorizing some of them.

• Too much of discretionary power vested with an individual or an institution - from the chief justice of India to the constable from the neighborhood police station
• Power to decide rules of the game, even change them - like cabinet ministers who decide the terms of a license, a contract ...
• Lack of transparency. Secrecy provides lot of protection to the corrupt - it happens at every government office. People generally don't even know when their application will be processed.
• Monopoly where there is no alternative to the people - like BSNL before the entry of private operators, state electricity boards only which can issue a new power connection to your house or office
• The 'expert factor' that provides protection - like doctors. We cannot even read their prescriptions
• Single or very few points of service that create long queues. Gatekeepers become very powerful here - like the passport office of Hyderabad, local government revenue office, local ration dealer...
• Demand far exceeds supply which is rationed - like the tatkal train tickets, refills of domestic cooking gas cylinders
• Thick rule book. I mean procedures which necessitate too many applications, too many approvals - People find it easier to pay bribes and get things done quickly than to follow all the rules.

The best way to reduce corruption is to reform our system so that it offers very few or no opportunities for corruption. It means curtailing discretionary powers, improving transparency, providing multiple options to people and eliminating queues. This is the true reform we as a nation need now. Lokpal or laws to try and punish the corrupt should ideally follow this reform, not precede it.