India’s image to handle corruption seems to have gone from bad to worse. Giving a sigh of relief to the common man who often suffers at the hands of corrupt public officials, there would soon be a helpline where one can seek free of cost legal advice on remedies and how to pursue their complaints.
The phone helpline is part of an initiative by anti-graft watchdog Transparency International’s advocacy wing, the Advocacy and Legal Advice Centre (ALAC), which is making three full-time centres operational in India including Ranchi, Bhubaneshwar and Delhi. “The aim is to provide information and direction to people as well as free of cost legal aid, which includes the process of litigation. Our experts, volunteers, retired officials and legal experts, including Supreme Court lawyers will help in process of litigation,” R.N Jha, ALAC was quoted as saying.
Talking about its success, Meenakshi Lekhi, lawyer, Supreme Court says, “It’s a good private initiative, but the question is what all they do to deal the corruption issues. Writing down complains is not enough, the positive outcome will make it strong. A strong official mechanism is required to run this initiative, so that proper procedure is laid down in keeping the real culprits of corruption behind the bars.”
And even young Delhiites are quite iffy about its implementation. Devika Mittal, a college student, “Honestly, I have little faith in helplines. I have seen how ineffective women, anti-stalking helplines are. I called up at anti-stalking helpline, and after three calls, they had registered my complaint. There are so many helplines but do they ever work? I’m glad that the government has taken an initiative. I’m not a critic, but just want that the government should stop playing with us. They shouldn’t just make policies but also implement them effectively.”