Reference Auto

In the wake of Amar Singh’s arrest in the cash-for-votes scam, Anna Hazare has upped the ante again, stating that MPs or MLAs (this time Amar Singh) involved in such scandals should be hanged but Anna must realize that it could be a numbers game at the Centre that probably determines whether someone goes to jail or not.

Anna said, “If a candidate takes or gives money in Vidhan Sabha or Parliament for asking questions or voting, such people should be awarded stringent punishment. In fact, they should be hanged.” 

Far from hanging, if we can get most of them behind bars, it’ll be an achievement. Yes, we just about made a start by putting four of our MPs into Tihar Jail.

But those entering Tihar are kind of becoming scapegoats while some bigger culprits or scamsters are sitting pretty in Parliament and it doesn’t seem they would cool their heels in jail in the near future.

The spate of arrests is only a tad encouraging, but these convictions are done in a very selective manner, mainly on how much influence an MP or an MLA can wield while trying to bring down a government.

For instance, if the DMK churns out another scamster, the government will not hesitate to hand over the case to the CBI and swiftly send the politician to jail.

But just in case corruption surfaces from the Trinamool Congress, which is a heavy weigh ally of the UPA government, then will the government or government agencies be swift enough to nail the guilty?

It is probably one of the worst-kept secrets that over the last few years, hoarding to form governments has been a part and parcel of India’s democracy but leave alone any possible arrest, no government or investigation agency has made any effort in bringing to light such scams, where crores have been squandered.

Moreover, even as some of our MPs are holed up in prison, there are parliamentarians and politicians involved in bigger scams such as the fodder scam and mismanagement of funds during the Commonwealth Games who have still gone unpunished for years.

So, was the arrest of Amar Singh done to hoodwink the public and give an impression that the government has been successful in reining in corruption even as our MPs make a concerted effort in trying to silence Anna Hazare’s voice?

It’s only after some of these heavy weights follow Amar Singh to jail will we see a breakthrough in taming corruption, but till then, will it continue to be a numbers game?