It is not every day that the leader of the country’s most reputable industrial house goes public — as Ratan Tata did on Monday — to say that over a decade ago he couldn’t start a new aviation enterprise as he refused to pay a bribe of `15 crores, and his speaking to three successive Prime Ministers (H.D. Deve Gowda, Inder K. Gujral and

Atal Behari Vajpayee) was of no avail. This at once points to the depth of the crisis we face as a society and a nation, and to the inherent difficulties in eradicating the scourge of corruption which is eating into the vitals of our public life, in the process marring national progress and the prospect of helping those at the bottom of the heap to surmount poverty.
Mr Tata’s revelation, of course, points to a malaise that we are only too familiar with. The theoretical proposition is accepted that systemic corruption — when national institutions of every kind are in the grip of malfeasance — is a characteristic of developing or underdeveloped societies. The point, however, is that a developing country that resolves to forge ahead must find ways to reduce the systemic corruption that chokes it at every step, and one day to eliminate it in the not too distant future. Only then can we be assured that we have transcended the ranks of developing states. This is not to say that developed countries are strangers to corruption. But in those territories the malaise is not systemic and therefore easier to deal with.
If the problem lies at the root and has spread like a blood infection to every artery, then we may be certain that nothing but the most drastic action to eradicate it will do. It is no one’s case that this cannot be done, although it is clear enough that it will take a lot of doing. If the political leadership appears determined — as we have lately seen in the case of the Adarsh Housing Society scandal, the Commonwealth Games scam and the allegations concerning 2G spectrum allotment — a beginning can be made. But we should not pat ourselves on the back too early in the day, although it is an encouraging sign that key officials associated with CWG have now been arrested. As we go along, we may just discover that vested interests will do what they can to thwart meaningful investigations. It is important for the political leadership to stay the course. Other than expressing moral indignation, which we should not cease to do, official procedures require to be seriously modified so that the environment that breeds some of the corruption can be altered. In his early days as Prime Minister during UPA-1, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh gave the impression of launching on such a course, but he appears to have got distracted from that objective.
As the size and power of India’s economy grows, and we are able to rise from being a shortage economy — where demand outstrips supply and the system turns into a breeding ground of corruption — we may find we are beginning to beat the scourge. But there is nothing automatic about the process. The political leadership at all levels — national, state and local self-government — needs to be relentless in its pursuit of the goal for cleanliness in public life. Corruption in the various branches, such as the bureaucracy or the police, is likely to be greatly reduced if the political bosses — irrespective of their party colour — crack the whip. For this to happen, the party system must rise to the occasion. It must nominate only clean individuals with a transparent record of public service for elections. Only then will legislatures and governments begin to look purpose-oriented and taint-free.