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VEDANTA MASS MEDIAFor most lawmakers, money is not key mover
 


            

 

  
               
      For most lawmakers, money is not key mover: Times of India

 


      
New Delhi, July 17: Facing the charge that pelf determines their conduct, Indian lawmakers have argued that a minority of non-serious middlemen doubling as politicians bank on such practices.

 

      They, however, admit that the JMM bribery case, which established that money was paid to five MPs to buy their support for a government, remains the biggest blot on the conduct of lawmakers.

 

      Apart from the JMM case, they said, money power has never been a key mover, even in the case of smaller parties and Independents, guiding their decision to support or oppose a government during trust vote.

 

      The issue is raging as MPs from some smaller parties have carried on prolonged negotiations with either side in the Lok Sabha for finalising their stand during the vote of confidence slated for July 22.

 

      A senior politician said most MPs, instead, could be really concerned about their prospects as elections are approaching and this might determine which side they consider more beneficial to support.

 

      "The kind of money being said to be on offer is outrageous. I have given 34 years to parliamentary politics and I can say with some authority that this is a cock and bull story. Some MPs play to the gallery and media hungrily grabs such gossip," he said.

 

      Another MP said the overwhelming majority in Parliament was of conscientious people, although he admitted that the situation could be different in some of the states. "There could be one or two dirty fish in the pond, acting at the behest of their leaders. But they will not survive in national politics for long. They will soon be forced to operate on the fringes," he added.

 

      The most dramatic trial of strength that Lok Sabha has ever seen was the defeat of 13-month-old Atal Bihari Vajpayee government by a single vote.

 

      The MP said this only displayed the strength of Indian democracy because if money were so important and the practice in vogue, the government could have easily "bought" a couple of MPs to its side. It was true also of almost every other government that was voted out of office, whether led by V P Singh, Chandra Shekhar, H D Deve Gowda or I K Gujral.

 

      "Plain politics, especially the stand of bigger parties like Congress and BJP, was the determining factor, not money power or protection of some corporate interest," he said.

 

      Another politician said the conduct of the majority matters the most in a democracy and the bulk of parliamentarians are accountable because millions of people closely monitor their behaviour. "Those who break the rules of integrity are invariably taken to task by the people, even if some among them manage to win a second term. It is easy to paint the politicians black even when only some of them indulge in questionable practices," he said.

 

 

      Bureau Report

 

 

 


    

 

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International Yoga Day 21 June 2015
International Yoga Day 21 June 2015

 

 

 

 

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