An Ideal Jan Lokpal Bill 2011 Of India By Praveen Dalal

In this guest column, Praveen Dalal, Managing Partner of New Delhi based Law Firm Perry4Law and leading Techno Legal Specialist of India has shared his views regarding the ideal Jan Lokpal Law of India. He has also sent his suggestions in this regard to the Government of India.

Any Person or Institution that believes that Jan Lokpal Law of India is not requires is certainly Corrupt and Anti National. This is the reason why the Government of India cannot deny its enactment. However, Indian Government can “Delay” it enactment and the same would amount to “Denial” of the very Jan Lokpal Law of India.

This “Delaying Tactics” is not new to Indian Government. The Lokpal Bill has been drafted for more than 42 years by Indian Government and it has failed to become an applicable law till now. The first Lokpal Bill was passed in the 4th Lok Sabha in 1969 but could not get through in the Rajya Sabha. Subsequently, Lokpal bills were introduced in 1971, 1977, 1985, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2005 and in 2008.

India’s intentions to ignore Corruption were also apparent when it did not “Ratified” the United Nations Convention against Corruption. Although India signed the Convention in 2005 but Indian Government refused to ratify the same. This is also the reason why Anti Corruption Laws of India remained not only “National’ in nature but also redundant and ineffective. Of course, India has now ratified the Convention and it has become mandatory for India to keep its laws in line with the same.

Realising that India is not at all serious in eradicating corruption, the Civil Society took up the task upon itself. Under the leadership of Anna Hazare the fight against widespread corruption in India was started. This resulted in the formulation of a “Joint Drafting Committee” (JDC) to draft a Jan Lokpal Bill of India 2011. However, the JDC failed to reach at a “Consensus” and it is believed that the deadline of drafting of the Jan Lokpal Bill would pass without any such Bill being drafted.

In the meanwhile, Baba Ramdev also started his fight against widespread corruption in India. He also raised a demand to consider black money deposited in foreign bank accounts as “National Property” and to formulate a law in this regard. Unfortunately, in my personal opinion, the Government of India adopted “Unconstitutional Methods” to derail and demoralise this agitation of Baba Ramdev and he was detained and then deported from New Delhi. This entire episode is “Highly Unfortunate” and it would have been better if the matter could have been solved through “Negotiations”.

Although Indian Government has taken a “Drastic Step” yet my “Concerns” are more than that alone. In this entire episode we have forgotten about enactment of suitable Corruption Laws in India like Jan Lokpal Act of India 2011. My specific concerns at this stage are what the Indian Jan Lokpal Act 2011 must incorporate to make it Just, Reasonable, Strong, Robust and Effective. I believe that Jan Lokpal Act 2011 of India is “Not a Panacea” for all sorts of Corruption related problems in India. Nevertheless it is an important “Milestone” in the fight against corruption in India. So besides fighting Corruption, India must also focus upon Administrative, Legal and Judicial Reforms.

Further, if Jan Lokpal Act 2011 of India has to be successful it must incorporate many more issues like Technology, Whistleblower Protection, Harmonisation between Judicial and Lokpal fields, Right to Information, Mandatory Electronic Services Delivery, etc.

The Jan Lokpal Act 2011 of India must be Techno Legal to be most successful. It must “Empower” Indian Citizens not only Legally but also Electronically. E-Governance and use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) must be an essential part of the Lokpal Mechanism. Further, the proposed Jan Lokpal Act 2011 of India must be kept “Flexible” by incorporating “Enabling Provisions” now for which Rules can be framed subsequently. This way a “Vested Right” is created in favour of Indian Citizens to fight against corruption in India and even the Government of India would have sufficient time to develop finer modalities at a later stage.

I hope India Government would consider these “Concerns and Suggestions” of mine and they would prove useful to all concerned.

Proposed Draft Jan Lokpal Act Of India 2011

In this media report my colleague Ram K Kaushik has well covered the issues of proposed draft Jan Lokpal Act of India 2011. While I endorse his views, I would like to add another dimension to the same. Hence, I have come up with this “updated version” of his article.

India has been lethargic about another correlated and crucial issue that is closely related to the proposed Lokpal Bill. It pertains to the necessity to formulate Whistleblower Protection Law in India.

Corruption and Whistleblower Protection are conflicting claims. A corrupt society would neither tolerate honest whistleblowers nor would it endeavour to protect them through legal and non-legal means, says Praveen Dalal, a Supreme Court Lawyer and managing member of India’s first RTI Helpdesk.

With the issuance of official gazette notification by ministry of law and justice, the joint drafting committee to prepare draft of the Lokpal Bill has been now officially constituted. However, before the good work has been started, allegations of nepotism have already surfaced pertaining to the “constitution” of the Committee.

The constitution of the Joint Drafting Committee is a good step in the right direction, says Praveen Dalal. Although the Committee has initially taken ten Members yet other Members can be, and would be, Co-Opted by the Committee in due course of time, informs Dalal. This is more so since the proposed Lokpal Bill must be as comprehensive and as effective as possible, says Dalal. There are many issues that have still not covered by either the Lokpal Bill suggested by Indian Government or the Jan Lokpal Bill suggested by civil activists, informs Dalal.

The best part of this Notification is that it is flexible as it allows the Committee to follow its “Own Procedure”. Thus, expert opinion of others can also be taken and they can be a part of the same as the “Invitee Members” of the Committee, informs Dalal.

So we must not bother much with the constitution of the Committee and proceed further. We must focus more upon the draft Lokpal Bill 2011 that can become an effective tool to fight corruption in India. The Committee can anytime seek help of other legal experts and civil liberty activists during its deliberation. For the time being, let us start the ball rolling, suggests Dalal.

We must realise that the Lokpal Bill has been drafted for more than 42 years by Indian Government and it has failed to become an applicable law till now, informs Dalal. The first Lokpal Bill was passed in the 4th Lok Sabha in 1969 but could not get through in the Rajya Sabha. Subsequently, Lokpal bills were introduced in 1971, 1977, 1985, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2005 and in 2008.

Let us at least start working in this direction. Further, merely drafting a Bill would not serve the purpose as it must also be made an enforceable law within a stipulated and fixed time, suggest Dalal. We have to generate a “wider consensus” in order to force Indian government to enact and make an enforceable Lokpal Act, 2011 till the end of this year, suggests Dalal.

It is high time for us to unite and fight for the common cause. There should not be any scope for internal fighting and disagreements. Already, it has taken too much time and anti corruption measures are need of the hour.

Further, the proposed draft Jan Lokpal Act 2011 of India must be kept flexible to incorporate diverse views and suggestions. By confining it to two versions alone would not serve the purpose. There are many issues that have yet to be incorporated in the proposed law. I hope public inputs and experts suggestions would also be incorporated in the proposed law.