By R Shankar, India Syndicate, 23/11/2010Wanted: Men with impeccable integrityAttorney General of India G E Vahanvati on Monday made a stunning revelation when he told a bench of the Supreme Court that if “impeccable integrity” was a criterion for public office, then every judicial and constitutional appointment would be subject to scrutiny.A straight interpretation would mean that there are hardly any men occupying high offices in the judicial system and constitutional posts who have a record of `impeccable integrity'. So, if you make impeccable integrity a criteria for appointments to high offices in the judiciary and to constitutional posts, most postings would be subject to scrutiny and questioning.In a way, Vahanvatti may be right, considering the growing stains of corruption in both the judicial system and in posts created through constitutional firman. Take for example the PF scam that has hit the judiciary hard; or the impeachment proceedings against Justice Soumitra Sen of the Calcutta High Court for misappropriating large sums of money.The Attorney General was responding to a "simple, hypothetical question" from the Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice S H Kapadia on the need for 'impeccable integrity' as an eligibility criterion for appointment as Chief Vigilance Commissioner (CVC). The court also wondered how the CVC intended to function given his inclusion as an accused in the 10-year-old chargesheet in the palmolein import case.Chief Vigilance Commissioner PJ ThomasChief Vigilance Commissioner PJ Thomas is facing a chargesheet in the 1991-92 scam relating to the import of palm oil in Kerala when he was the civil supplies secretary. The case is still pending in the Court of Enquiry Commissioner and Special Judge (Vigilance) in Thiruvananthapuram.So, the question is, is Thomas a man of 'impeccable integrity'? The Comptroller and Auditor General had found that the unwarranted import, which flouted the Central and state rules, had caused a loss of Rs 2.80 crore to the state exchequer."Impeccable integrity is only a suggestion. It cannot be made a criterion," the AG argued. "If such a criterion (impeccable integrity) has to be included, then every judicial appointment will be subject to scrutiny... every constitutional appointment will come under challenge," the AG said.If one were to extend the criterion to the political system, most politicians would not be eligible to hold any post, including that of a seat in a god-forsaken panchayat.The phenomena of honest men becoming 'endangered' is not peculiar to India. The British, who have an unwritten Constitution whose central peg is honesty and integrity, have a problem too. This led to the framing of guidelines in 1995 for politicians. It was Lord Nolan who, in his report on 'Standards in Public Life,' said: "Holders of public office are accountable for their decisions and actions to the public and must submit themselves to whatever scrutiny is appropriate to their office."Who is ready to submit himself to such scrutiny in India? You can count them on your fingertips.In the present government, one can count a few men with impeccable integrity - Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Defence Minister A K Antony, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Home Minister P Chidambaram.Others who have a shade of impeccable integrity could include Jairam Ramesh and Kapil Sibal.Others who could be roped into the 'impeccable integrity' list could be former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, former speaker Somnath Chatterjee, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Kerala's Chief Minister V S Achuthandndan, Karnataka's Law Minister Suresh Kumar.Here is something to ruminate upon: "I would go to the length of giving the whole Congress a decent burial, rather than put up with the corruption that is rampant." That was Mahatma Gandhi.If the Mahatma's words were to be implemented in letter and spirit, politicians and many institutions would be fit for not a decent, but an indecent burial.Source: India Syndicate
