[Reader-list] Fwd: [pudr-info] Press Statement: PUDR strongly condemns the unconstitutional and undemocratic act of the Central Government in detaining Anna Hazare and his supporters

[Nagraj Adve]

Tara Prakash,
It's quite easy to take potshots at this corruption campaign, and I don't
seek to do that. One can do so on many grounds and levels, depending on
one's own politics - that it is largely urban and middle class driven; that
it is openly supported by the Sangh Parivar orgns; that Anna supports the
death penalty for the very corrupt, etc.
I don't think you can stop the machinery by targetting the oil. It will
still run, perhaps a little less smoothly (for elites and capital, which
itself may be a welcome thing). Overall, that a number of high-profile
politicians and business people have been jailed in recent months reflects
the new found confidence of Indian capital. In capitalism, however, we have
created a monster over which we are losing control, if not already lost
control to a very large degree. Corruption does not address any of the huge
challenges it throws up, and will continue doing so with greater chaos in
the near future,
Naga

On 18 August 2011 22:50, Tara Prakash <taraprakash at gmail.com> wrote:

> **
> True. But how can you kill the wood without cutting the trees? Isn't it a
> good strategy to defunct the machine by stopping the oil supply that makes
> it run? It good to hit this corruption?
> Let it not be the situation at the international stage on global warming,
> the vested interests passing the buck to each other. The guy next door says
> the main corruption is in the parliament and the parliamentarian says the
> guy next door needs to change first.
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> *From:* Nagraj Adve <nagraj.adve at gmail.com>
> *To:* Tara Prakash <taraprakash at gmail.com>
> *Cc:* Sarai <reader-list at sarai.net>
> *Sent:* Thursday, August 18, 2011 2:21 AM
> *Subject:* Re: [Reader-list] Fwd: [pudr-info] Press Statement: PUDR
> strongly condemns the unconstitutional and undemocratic act of the Central
> Government in detaining Anna Hazare and his supporters
>
> Tara Prakash, the current focus on corruption - hugely significant as it is
> - misses the wood for the trees a bit. What's much worse than corruption is
> conscious govt policy that screws ordinary people's lives - to mention a few
> examples offhand, what's happening to Indian agriculture; opening out mining
> to large private corporates; the decline in rural extension services, and
> rural banking, in Delhi the handing over of large charitable hospitals to
> private corporates; the privatization of water, etc.
> Corruption has a part in some though not all of this, but it merely the oil
> in the machinery. Far worse is the machinery itself.
> Naga
>
> On 18 August 2011 03:38, Tara Prakash <taraprakash at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> No comments from Shuddhabrata Sen on this? Last time there was an email
>> from him on this issue on the list where he sounded deferential to the law
>> makers and almost contemptuous of Anna Hazare and his supporters.
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Nagraj Adve" <nagraj.adve at gmail.com>
>> To: "Sarai" <reader-list at sarai.net>; <chhattisgarh-net at yahoogroups.**com<chhattisgarh-net at yahoogroups.com>>;
>> "Free Binayak Sen" <free-binayaksen at googlegroups.**com<free-binayaksen at googlegroups.com>
>> >
>> Sent: Tuesday, August 16, 2011 9:38 AM
>> Subject: [Reader-list] Fwd: [pudr-info] Press Statement: PUDR strongly
>> condemns the unconstitutional and undemocratic act of the Central Government
>> in detaining Anna Hazare and his supporters
>>
>>
>>   ---------- Forwarded message ----------
>>> From: PUDR Delhi <pudrdelhi at gmail.com>
>>> Date: 16 August 2011 18:04
>>> Subject: [pudr-info] Press Statement: PUDR strongly condemns the
>>> unconstitutional and undemocratic act of the Central Government in
>>> detaining
>>> Anna Hazare and his supporters
>>> To: pudr-info at pudr.org
>>>
>>>
>>> *PEOPLES UNION FOR DEMOCRATIC RIGHTS*
>>>
>>> *Press Release*
>>>
>>> *16th August 2011*
>>>
>>> ** **
>>>
>>> Peoples Union for Democratic Rights (PUDR) strongly condemns the
>>> unconstitutional and undemocratic act of the Central Government in
>>> detaining
>>> Anna Hazare and his supporters in the early hours of 16th August, who
>>> were
>>> scheduled to arrive at the site of peaceful demonstration. PUDR considers
>>> the conditions laid down by the government such as number of participants
>>> allowed, timing of the demonstrations etc. to be authoritarian. PUDR is
>>> concerned that this clampdown on democratic rights represents the
>>> shrinking
>>> democratic space in the country where S. 144 of CRPC is used to prevent
>>> citizens from lodging their disapproval of government policies and
>>> actions.
>>>
>>> PUDR is of the opinion that irrespective of politics they espouse,
>>> individuals and organisations have the legitimate right to mobilise
>>> people
>>> and stage protest against the government policies which they dislike or
>>> oppose.  In the specific instance of the Lokpal bill there maybe sharp
>>> disagreement over the various versions of the bill in the public domain
>>> from
>>> a variety of vantage points. We are mindful of the fact that two most
>>> talked
>>> about bills namely the government version and Anna Hazare’s team version
>>> have been subjected to public criticism for a variety of reasons.
>>> However,
>>> for the government to claim that once the matter is placed before the
>>> parliament there is no cause for public protest  smacks of government
>>> being
>>> innocent of constitution they have sworn to protect. We wish to remind
>>> the
>>> central government that neither they nor the parliament can take away
>>> people’s inalienable rights under the spurious plea that once people
>>> elect
>>> their representatives right to protest by citizens gets curtailed.
>>>
>>> PUDR  is also concerned that it is the Central Government, which  by
>>> taking
>>> recourse to undemocratic means,  is further alienating people and
>>> compelling
>>> them, to *either *become mute witness to government-bureaucracy-**
>>> corporations
>>> nexus  in loot and plunder of the public funds, or to  take recourse to
>>> violent means of protest.
>>>
>>> PUDR, therefore, calls upon people to oppose the government stand on
>>> clamping down on legitimate protests and question government's right to
>>> decide what is permissible and what is not, so long as protests are
>>> peaceful.
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Paramjeet Singh and Harish Dhawan
>>>
>>> (Secretaries PUDR)
>>>
>>> ** **
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>>
>>
>