Civil vs political
JUST OVER three months ago, Jantar Mantar became the epicentre of a nationwide frenzy against corruption. Social activist Anna Hazare was on a fast-unto-death over his single-point demand of enacting a stringent Lokpal Bill, which would establish an institution to deal with cases of corruption in high offices. Hazare was joined by thousands of supporters at the venue, while millions across the country endorsed his fight. Within four days, the government gave in and announced formation of a 10-member joint drafting committee to script the proposed legislation. Hazare was to nominate five of these members as representatives of civil society. The other five were to be ministers.
In the weeks that followed, the drafting committee held nine meetings but the atmosphere at most of these was far from cordial. Both sides stuck to their guns on contentious issues like bringing the prime minister, senior judges, members of Parliament and the bureaucracy under the ambit of the Lokpal. The situation reached a flashpoint on June 22 when the two sides declared that they had failed to achieve consensus on a single draft of the Bill.
The government has cleverly manipulated the anti-corruption campaign and turned the public debate into a battle between civil society and Parliament. Leaders of almost every political party have questioned the legitimacy of civil society in drafting a bill. “Small groups comprising three or five people cannot claim leadership on
ANNA HAZARE’S CAMPAIGN FOR THE LOKPAL BILL HAD AN UNEXPECTED TWIST: ATTEMPTS WERE MADE TO BRING CIVIL SOCIETY TOO UNDER SCANNER
such issues,” says Congress media head Janardan Dwivedi.
India has around 3.2 million registered non-government organisations (NGOs). Indians have more per capita NGOs than hospital beds. The Central Statistical Organisation of India states there are around four NGOs for every 1,000 people in urban areas and 2.3 NGOs for every 1,000 rural population. Their work spans a wide spectrum, from judiciary to legislatures to media. There is hardly any ministry that does not support or engage an NGO. Due to its wide reach it is often called the third sector.
The government-civil society relations appear to have hit the nadir. The political class termed the five civil society members of the Bill’s joint drafting committee “unelectable tyrants”. But civil society groups argue that despite being selfappointed, the work of NGO leaders is more open to public scrutiny.
In this context, the assertion of advocacy NGOs cannot be missed. These groups have confronted the government and the political class the most. They are also linked to international campaigns and networks which provide them instant global acknowledgement.
The changed scenario has prompted the government to set new conditions while engaging with NGOs. The government does not want civil society to have any say in formulating rules. For instance, its views are not being taken while drafting the land acquisition and right to food legislation.
This has created division between NGOs that take support from the government and “activist” groups which adopt aggressive policy postures. Community-based organisations and people’s movements also look upon both kinds of NGOs with suspicion. “Liberalisation has split us on the ground of money. Movements do not have money, but they form the core of any campaign for change,” says Madhuresh.
Already, there is an attempt to create a regulatory mechanism for NGOs. A task force constituted by the Planning Commission has suggested a statutory body called National Accreditation Council of India. NGOs oppose it calling it a government control mechanism. They argue the body cannot be “self-regulatory” as it will have significant government representation. The body will have 51 members, of which 20 will be from the non-government sector. The rest will be nominated by government and industrial houses.