A DIVISION bench of Supreme Court comprising of Justice G.S. Singhvi and Justice A.K. Ganguly while listening to a petition which accused the Madhya Pradesh government of allotting 20 acres of prime land at throwaway price to the Kushabhau Thakre Trust having top BJP leaders L.K. Advani and Venkaiah Naidu as trustees has rightly commented that the discretionary powers are not being used in people's interest.
Discretion invites corruption, favouritism and nepotism. Bench has commented that discretionary powers are to be used in in the good interest of the public but in the last fifty years this is exercised just for the opposite. If we go by the instances of discretionary powers used by the Chief Ministers of various states and central ministers after the Independence, we can safely conclude that by and large these were used to oblige one's near and dear ones by ignoring the merit.
Discretionary powers, be it allotment of plots, flats, institutional plotsare usedby politicians in power to favour their supporters. The recent gesture by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Karunanidhi has hit the headlines for allotting flats to his favourites. It is good that sense has prevailed upon him and the Chief Minister has shed his discretionary powers.
The solution lies in abolishing of all type of discretionary powers by the chief ministersand the central ministers. The land and flats allotted under the discretionary quota should be put to open auction which will fetch considerable money to the government which can be used for launching pro poor welfare schemes.
UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi has recently asked his party chief minsters and central ministers belonging toher party to shed their all types of discretionary powers particularly in the field of allotment of lands. After making such appeal in Burari session of the party, she recently shot letters to chief ministers and central ministers again requesting them to shed their discretio! nary pow ers. Despite of the appeals being made, it is saddening that no concrete action was initiated.
Sonia should ensure that her words are paid heed to otherwise the Opposition and its other alliances will be right in alleging that it is only part of diversionary tactics to mislead the people from various scams and scandals. Not only the chief ministers and central ministers belonging to Congress party should act on Sonia's advice but the chief ministers of non congress and left party ruled states and central ministers belonging to coalition partners should also follow this which will be a right step in bringing out the true colours from this corruption plagues country.
Sonia is reported to have written in her letter to chief minsters that there was ample evidence that all discretionary powers particularly in land allocation breed corruption and she would like that all Congress chief ministers and ministers both at the centre and the states to set an example by reviewing and relinquishing their discretionary powers particularly in matter of allotment of land. Media and citizens should join hands in launching a national wide campaign to force congress and opposition parties for making sure that discretionary powers are not used illegitimately by their chief minsters.
Haryana had also hit the headlines three decades back when the then Chief Minister Bhajan Lal allotted thousands of residential plots to influential people from his discretionary quota which fetched him considerable premium. His beneficiaries included top civil and police officers, High Court judges, Congress workers and journalists. At that time Bhajan Lal also obliged employees of All India Congress Committee by allotting plots from his discretionary quota. Haryana's current chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda made a policy for allotment of plots and the residential plot given to army chief Deepak Kapoor which also hit the headlines with Kapoor requ! esting f or permission for selling the plot against the policy.
An unholy nexus of bureaucrats and politicians is looting the country putting even Mahmud of Ghazni to shame. The bench hearing the Madhya Pradesh government case has rightly commented that our bureaucrats are taught and trained according to British traditions and they never say no to their political bosses.
Discretion invites corruption, favouritism and nepotism. Bench has commented that discretionary powers are to be used in in the good interest of the public but in the last fifty years this is exercised just for the opposite. If we go by the instances of discretionary powers used by the Chief Ministers of various states and central ministers after the Independence, we can safely conclude that by and large these were used to oblige one's near and dear ones by ignoring the merit.
Discretionary powers, be it allotment of plots, flats, institutional plotsare usedby politicians in power to favour their supporters. The recent gesture by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Karunanidhi has hit the headlines for allotting flats to his favourites. It is good that sense has prevailed upon him and the Chief Minister has shed his discretionary powers.
The solution lies in abolishing of all type of discretionary powers by the chief ministersand the central ministers. The land and flats allotted under the discretionary quota should be put to open auction which will fetch considerable money to the government which can be used for launching pro poor welfare schemes.
UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi has recently asked his party chief minsters and central ministers belonging toher party to shed their all types of discretionary powers particularly in the field of allotment of lands. After making such appeal in Burari session of the party, she recently shot letters to chief ministers and central ministers again requesting them to shed their discretio! nary pow ers. Despite of the appeals being made, it is saddening that no concrete action was initiated.
Sonia should ensure that her words are paid heed to otherwise the Opposition and its other alliances will be right in alleging that it is only part of diversionary tactics to mislead the people from various scams and scandals. Not only the chief ministers and central ministers belonging to Congress party should act on Sonia's advice but the chief ministers of non congress and left party ruled states and central ministers belonging to coalition partners should also follow this which will be a right step in bringing out the true colours from this corruption plagues country.
Sonia is reported to have written in her letter to chief minsters that there was ample evidence that all discretionary powers particularly in land allocation breed corruption and she would like that all Congress chief ministers and ministers both at the centre and the states to set an example by reviewing and relinquishing their discretionary powers particularly in matter of allotment of land. Media and citizens should join hands in launching a national wide campaign to force congress and opposition parties for making sure that discretionary powers are not used illegitimately by their chief minsters.
Haryana had also hit the headlines three decades back when the then Chief Minister Bhajan Lal allotted thousands of residential plots to influential people from his discretionary quota which fetched him considerable premium. His beneficiaries included top civil and police officers, High Court judges, Congress workers and journalists. At that time Bhajan Lal also obliged employees of All India Congress Committee by allotting plots from his discretionary quota. Haryana's current chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda made a policy for allotment of plots and the residential plot given to army chief Deepak Kapoor which also hit the headlines with Kapoor requ! esting f or permission for selling the plot against the policy.
An unholy nexus of bureaucrats and politicians is looting the country putting even Mahmud of Ghazni to shame. The bench hearing the Madhya Pradesh government case has rightly commented that our bureaucrats are taught and trained according to British traditions and they never say no to their political bosses.
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