AAP Resists Lokayukta Inquiry in Possible Corruption Case
Most Indian politicians evade prosecution and imprisonment in cases of crime and corruption with the false pretexts that the complaints against them are politically motivated.
By Rakesh Raman
While there are multiple complaints of corruption against Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislators, the party has decided to defy the notice from Delhi’s anti-corruption body Lokayukta which has asked AAP MLAs to reveal the details of their assets.
Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel – who is also an AAP member – said Tuesday that the Lokayukta’s notices to Delhi MLAs for revealing their assets and liabilities are ‘politically motivated.’
The Lokayukta office has issued notices to the legislators, asking them to give details of their assets and liabilities by January 28. The notices were issued in response to a petition filed by an advocate and RTI activist.
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Instead of simply divulging the details of their assets – which is a basic requirement for a public functionary, strangely AAP – headed by Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal – has responded in a weird manner.
Speaker Goel has demanded penal action against the complainant and threatened to sue him. In a letter to Delhi Lokayukta Reva Khetrapal, according to reports, Goel said the Lokayukta’s office was not empowered to seek such details of MLAs, let alone the speaker and deputy speaker of the Delhi Assembly.
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Kejriwal’s AAP is giving a strange excuse for concealing their asset details, saying Lokayukta has sought details of only 66 AAP MLAs and not the 4 MLAs who belong to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Moreover, AAP suggests that Lokayukta should have dismissed the petition.
But why should Lokayukta dismiss the petition? Even if it is a ‘politically motivated’ complaint, as AAP claims, AAP MLAs must reveal their asset details publicly because they are using public funds.
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Most Indian politicians evade prosecution and imprisonment in cases of crime and corruption with the false pretexts that the complaints against them are politically motivated.
While bureaucratic and political corruption is rampant in Delhi, new reports suggest that the office of Delhi’s Lokayukta has received 41 complaints of corruption against the AAP legislators. The complaints are against the AAP MLAs as well as ministers.
But why do AAP leaders want to hide the details of their wealth? As they are trying to defy the Lokayukta notice, it shows that they could have amassed assets disproportionate to their known sources of income – which is a serious crime.
The institution of Lokayukta has been set up to inquire into the corruption allegations against public functionaries in the National Capital Territory of Delhi. It also works to eradicate corruption, favoritism, abuse of position and power among the public functionaries.
By Rakesh Raman, who is a national award-winning journalist and social activist. He is the founder of a humanitarian organization RMN Foundation which is working in diverse areas to help the disadvantaged and distressed people in the society. He also creates and publishes a number of digital publications on different subjects.
