Hon’ble Minister, Shri Suresh Pachouri; Director, CBI, Shri U.S. Mishra; Ladies and Gentlemen:

I am honoured to be here today to deliver the Sixth D.P. Kohli Memorial Lecture. I thank the organizers for inviting me to deliver this important Lecture and share my views on a very topical theme, namely ‘Parliamentary Democracy in India – Present and Future’.

At the outset, I would like to pay my tributes to the memory of the Late Dharamnath Prasad Kohli, an outstanding police officer, who was honoured with the Padma Bhushan in recognition of his long and distinguished service to the nation. D.P. Kohli, the first police officer to adorn the office of the Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation, which he did with great distinction, exemplified those fundamental values of public life, which are absolutely essential to sustain and strengthen a parliamentary democratic polity like ours. Renowned for his courage of conviction and farsightedness, he brought to bear the imprint of his personality on an office, which was conceived to uphold integrity in public life. In the process, he set very high standards for his successors to follow. It was his commitment and vision that has helped CBI emerge as an efficient and effective organization as the premier investigating agency of the country.

Of particular import to him was probity and integrity, not just in the organization, which he headed, but in the nation as a whole. All of us need to honour officers like D.P. Kohli, who have led by example and lived up to the expectations of all concerned by their remarkable efficiency, unimpeachable integrity and utmost devotion to duty at all times and in all circumstances. I trust that the ideals of D.P. Kohli will continue to inspire the CBI in the discharge of its onerous responsibilities without fear or favour. I must stress that today, what the nation needs most is officers of the stature and commitment of the late D.P. Kohli who had an abiding faith in the cardinal principles of democracy, of good governance, and of Rule of Law, for achieving the ultimate goal of the socio-economic development of our society in full measure.

The subject of my talk is "Parliamentary Democracy in India – Present and Future". In an increasingly shrinking world, thanks to the remarkable advances in science and technology, no nation is an island; we are all integral parts of a global village. Free flow of information, easy access to communication and faster movement of people across countries and continents have enabled the emergence of a global community with a broader perspective and understanding of the fundamentals of an inclusive society, transparency, probity, Rule of Law and good governance practices – all of them essential components of a successful democratic order. Democracy, which had to surmount many challenges to its survival, over the centuries, has finally emerged triumphant as the most preferred system of governance, testifying to what Franklin Roosevelt said: "Democracy is not a static thing, it is an everlasting march". It has not been an easy endeavour, though. The trials and tribulations democracy had to confront during its onward march were many. What facilitated its eventual glory has been its representative character, inherent resilience to cope with the challenges of the times and the demands of native realities. Thus, today, democracy survives, rather thrives, in countries, best suiting their immediate requirements, never compromising, however, on its classical tenets, the most important being its unquestioned subordination to the sovereign will of the people. The content and contours of democracy may vary with countries and climes, but at the center stage of it will inevitably be the people; for, democracy derives its strength and sustenance from the people as a whole.

Friends, as the world moves in to the Third Millennium, the debate of the times mostly revolves around delineating the principles of democratic governance, deepening and consolidating democracy wherever it is already in existence, and making governance effective for sustained human development everywhere, at all times. The focus today is not only on the forms of democracy, but primarily on its substance. As you all know, in what are called established democracies, people are not so much concerned about the institutional arrangements as much as are about what these institutions deliver. It is a fact that democracy is widely advocated and sought after, though with its differently conceived meanings. The nature of the democratic set-up differs with cultural and political differences and with varying stages of socio-economic development of individual countries. We are witness to the remarkable impact of changes in the global political, economic and technological environments, on the nature and form of democracy.

As against social exclusion which itself impairs the quality of democracy by providing a breeding ground for intolerance and repression, inclusive democracy, with its overriding social dimension, has tended to retain popular support across the world. The notion of good governance cannot be appreciated in isolation from any form of democratic governance. At one place, transparency, accountability and performance form the benchmark for authority, legitimacy and good governance; at the same time, democracy is recognized as the system under which the individuals and their collective aspirations could be met, their interests could be articulated and the civil society movement nurtured.

Democracy requires realising in practice a certain set of values relating to institutions and also concerning human rights and to ensure people a voice in their political governance, besides the right to liberty and equality which, are not only necessary to protect the sovereignty of the people but also to ensure an all-pervading and people-oriented political process. That is why accountability and transparency, representation, local democracy and participation, civic association and free media, political and civil rights, free and fair elections, and an independent Judiciary form the bedrock of democracy. The self-corrective nature of democracy is one of its other remarkable attributes. Democracy, which is founded on the right of everyone to take part in the management of public affairs, warrants the existence of representative institutions at all levels and, in particular, a Parliament which represents all shades of opinion and which has the requisite powers and means to express and give substance to the will of the people.

Coming specifically to parliamentary democracy in India - the largest working democracy in the world - the effectiveness of the representative institutions has been successfully tested time and again, amidst a vast diversity prevailing in cultural, linguistic, social and religious spheres. Though parliamentary democracy in the modern sense has been functioning in our country only for the last nearly six decades, our experience of representative institutions is not new. We have had a democratic tradition for long and the freedom struggle brought our democratic ethos and values into a sharper focus. Thus, in the post-Independence era, it was considered that parliamentary democracy was the best suited to our conditions and as such our Founding Fathers opted for a parliamentary democratic polity for our people. During a debate in the Lok Sabha, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru very appropriately asserted that we have chosen the system of parliamentary democracy deliberately, because we thought it was in keeping with our own old traditions, not as they were, but adjusted to the new conditions and new surroundings.

Friends, just as at the core of our national movement for Independence were the democratic ideals of our people, our Founding Fathers bequeathed to us a great Constitution carrying with it our national ethos and features of great democracies of the world. Though Westminster type of parliamentary democracy has been given some space in our Constitution, it would not be correct to presume that our institutions, structures and parliamentary practices and procedures are a replica of the British model. In fact, it is the recognition of our rich democratic heritage and the situation-specific conditions prevailing in our country, which made for the adoption of the parliamentary system of democracy with a distinctive Indian approach. The British statesman Anthony Eden hailed India’s decision to adopt the system of parliamentary democracy thus:

Of all the experiments in government which have been attempted since the beginning of time, I believe that the Indian venture into parliamentary government is the most exciting. … The Indian venture is not a pale imitation of our practice at home, but a magnified and multiplied reproduction on a scale we have never dreamt of. If it succeeds, its influence on Asia is incalculable for good. Whatever the outcome, we must honour those who attempt it.

The Preamble, reflecting the spirit of the Constitution and the broad framework of ideals ingrained in our ancient heritage, declared the resolve of the people to constitute India into a Sovereign, Socialist, Secular, and Democratic Republic. Further, it resolves to secure for the people Justice – social, economic and political; Liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship; Equality of status and opportunity; and to promote among them all, Fraternity, assuming the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the nation. The expression "We the People" amply connotes the essence of the Constitution and the authority of the people in our national affairs.

Friends, by asserting so in the Preamble to the Constitution, our Founding Fathers were keen to lay the foundation of a truly working representative Government under a parliamentary system of democracy to hold the country together, while providing sufficient space for diversities and pluralism to co-exist.

The achievement of social and economic democracy as much as political democracy has been one of the prime concerns with the framers of our Constitution. The Constitution codifies a long list of inalienable Fundamental Rights for our citizens. These Fundamental Rights, as you are aware, expressly provide for the right to equality, right to freedom, right to freedom of religion, right against exploitation, cultural and educational rights and the right to constitutional remedies, apart from protection against discrimination on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. The very purpose of the Fundamental Rights is to create an egalitarian society and to give real meaning to our system of democracy. At the same time, under the scheme of our Constitution, there are certain restrictions which the Government of the day is required to follow in the governance of the country for the common good and for public interest.

Apart from the Fundamental Rights, one of the more important parts of our Constitution lists the Directive Principles of State Policy, which is indeed an agenda for a Welfare State for the realisation of the ideal of social and economic democracy in the country. Article 38 of the Constitution gives very clear direction in this regard by stating that "the State shall strive to promote the welfare of the people by securing and protecting as effectively as it may a social order in which justice, social, economic and political, shall inform all the institutions of national life". Thus an important responsibility to take the necessary initiatives to minimize the inequities in income, eliminate inequalities in status, facilities and opportunities, not only amongst individuals but also amongst groups of people in different areas or engaged in different vocations was placed on the national leadership by the Constitution itself. This was in line with Mahatma Gandhi’s thoughts, which he articulated thus: "My notion of democracy is that under it the weakest should have the same opportunity as the strongest." As such, the Indian leadership was fully convinced that political freedom without economic and social freedom was incomplete, vulnerable and fragile. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, the architect of our Constitution, also stressed that we must make our political democracy a social democracy as well, a way of life which recognized liberty, equality and fraternity as its essential creeds.

Further envisaged in our Constitution is the scheme of separation of powers and checks and balances among and between the three principal organs of the State – the Executive, the Legislature and the Judiciary. This has, in fact, been recognized as among the characteristic features of our democratic set-up. Ours is a judicious blend of the principle of distribution of powers and the doctrine of parliamentary sovereignty in such a manner that we have the best of both, but without the absolute rigidity of either of the two. I would say that this very postulate made our Constitution the Supreme Law of the Land, subjecting all the branches of governance to its overriding authority and control. Yet, as Dr. Ambedkar said: "The Constitution can provide only the organs of State such as the Legislatures, the Executive and the Judiciary. The factors on which the working of those organs of the State depends are the people and the political parties they will set up as their instruments to carry out their wishes and their politics." Within this framework of our Constitution are the independence of the Judiciary and the other attributes of parliamentary system of democracy and governance – a competitive party system, free and fair elections, a vigilant and responsible media, and a well-informed citizenry.

Thus, a basic framework is in place in our country to enable parliamentary democracy to flourish under native conditions and ensure the optimum welfare of the people by providing an enabling environment for securing peace along with development of the country. But to have a perceptive assessment of the subject of today’s deliberation, we will have to see how near we are to realizing our goals. The constitutional framework does provide a foundation on which the system is built and which is further strengthened by consolidating and deepening the democratic institutions and parliamentary processes. As I said earlier, the building of a political democracy could not be the sole object. We have always aspired to establish economic and social democracy in our country. Democracy becomes meaningful only when enabling social, political, economic and legal conditions are created wherein people can exercise their rights and they are free from fear and want. I believe that dignity, dissent and development are the hallmarks of a democracy. But, we must ask ourselves whether, over the years, we have come out successfully through these tests during the process of democratization, as envisaged by our Constitution, and how far we have been able to honour the commitments we made to our people. To venture a look into the future, one has to necessarily assess the achievements and the shortcomings of the past as well as the present.

Friends, no one can dispute the fact that even after more than five decades of freedom, we have not been able to guarantee the basic right to development of our people as is evident from the fact that poverty, illiteracy, ignorance, lack of education, child mortality, unemployment, underemployment, poor health care, intolerance, corruption, violence, lack of character, caste, religious and gender-based prejudices and other weaknesses and infirmities continue to bedevil us, and specially so in the case of the disadvantaged and marginalised sections of society. The condition of the working class in the country is far from satisfactory and, in some sense, appalling. Food, shelter and clothing for all our citizens continue to remain only elusive goals. The basic issues influencing the everyday life of the people, which, though enlisted in the Directive Principles of State Policy, have still to be realised. In fact, several political scientists have argued that under the prevailing circumstances, the Directive Principles should be made enforceable to ensure accountability of the administration.

The widening gap between the rich and the poor is a matter of grave concern. Economic iniquities tend to weaken the national fabric in many ways. Similarly, the increasing chasm between popular expectations and the actual performance of the system is also very distressing. Distributive justice is still a distant dream. Dignified human existence and acceptable levels of socio-economic equity have to be secured on a priority basis for which we have to enforce accountability which is the key element in ensuring good governance at all stages. Accountability essentially requires that the authority is exercised in such a manner which shall meet the obligations to the society, under the law, for obtaining the best results with the right to enforce the same. We should look at democracy not just as a form of government but more as a way of life and governance.

It is widely held that good governance is essentially participatory, consensus-oriented, accountable, transparent, responsive, effective and efficient, equitable and inclusive and follows the Rule of Law. It also warrants that corruption is minimized, if not eliminated, the views of the minorities and the weaker sections are accommodated and the voice of the most vulnerable in the society is heard in decision-making. If parliamentary democracy in India is to take deep roots, the key elements of good governance must be practised by all – whether it is the Legislature, the Executive, the Judiciary or the active civil society. If we make an assessment of the prevailing state of affairs, we cannot overlook the fact that there is a visible lack of accountability of the governing institutions and individuals and an apparent deficiency of transparency in the decision-making processes. Public administration, and in particular, our administrative apparatus is still not free from the evil of corruption.

What is described as ‘criminalisation of politics’ remains a problem at hand and we are still to ensure probity in our political and administrative functioning. The politics of exclusion – be it based on caste, creed, sex or religion – poses a serious threat to our unity and integrity. We need to reassert our secular credentials and resolve to create conditions in our country "when religion will not only be professed and preached and practised freely but will have become a cementing force for binding man to man and not serve as a disturbing and disrupting force dividing and separating," as prophetically emphasized by Dr. Rajendra Prasad. We cannot also deny the fact that illegal and immoral practices are being used for winning elections by some sections of our political opinion, resulting in the degeneration of the electoral system and eroding the true representative and democratic character of our polity.

Ours is a highly pluralistic society. We need to practise cooperative federalism to make for reconciliation of the urges and aspirations of the people where the Centre and the States would work in cooperation and consultation with each other in the interest of the people and preserve the unity and integrity of the country. I would attribute the lopsided development in the country to our imperfect federal structure and imbalanced distribution of powers between the Centre and the States. I believe that to maintain harmonious relations between the Centre and the States, it is high time that a closer look is given to this crucial aspect. Good governance practices demand that meaningful and effective autonomy is given to the States so that they come out with their own policies and programmes and raise their own resources, keeping in view their needs and according to their capacity.

In spite of our inability and failures in fulfilling people’s aspirations on several fronts, it is a remarkable achievement that our people have time and again reposed their faith in the system by participating in the political process. The successful holding of 14 General Elections and many more elections to the State Legislative Assemblies, which have seen several changes of Governments in a peaceful manner, is a clear reflection of the efficacy of the system we have put in place. Over the decades, the character of our parliamentary system has undergone a radical change with a genuinely multi-party system taking deep roots in the country. A distinct coalition culture is slowly emerging which is not a matter to be wary of. What we have to ensure, however, is political stability because frequent elections and uncertainties can be detrimental to the political and economic health of our country.

We are now witness to the emergence of new political realities in the country. It is a healthy development that at the Centre, parties or coalition of parties are forming Governments and several major political parties are sitting in the Opposition. The practice of extending issue-based support from outside without joining the Government is a new phenomenon. But there is responsibility cast on the parties to ensure the smooth functioning of our legislative institutions, otherwise, the basic foundation of our constitutional system will be wrecked. Without functioning legislative institutions, our system of parliamentary democracy will lose the faith and respect of the people, ultimately, giving rise to cynicism and tension, which cannot but weaken the entire constitutional edifice. In order to promote and further consolidate democracy, the Ruling and the Opposition Parties in Parliament and in the State Legislatures should see themselves as partners in the development of the democratic process. The Opposition should not oppose just for the sake of opposition but must display a creative and meaningful attitude of constructive opposition keeping the larger national interest in mind rather than for scoring narrow political points, as much as the Ruling Party or combine is required to show greater sensitivity towards Parties and view-points opposed to its own. Otherwise, the very basis of our system of democracy will be seriously called into question. As Gandhiji rightly said:

Evolution of democracy is not possible if we are not prepared to hear the other side. We shut the doors of reason when we refuse to listen to our opponents or, having listened, make fun of them. If intolerance becomes a habit, we run the risk of missing the truth.

During the last over five decades, our Parliament has passed many progressive social and economic legislations to address the concerns of different sections of society. Special emphasis has been laid on the issues relating to human dignity and fundamental rights of the citizens. The Parliament has also created mechanisms specifically for the well-being of the disadvantaged sections of society. The National Human Rights Commission, the National Commission for Women, the National Commissions for Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, the National Commissions for Minorities and Backward Classes, are all creations of Parliament. Our Parliament has also taken various initiatives to further promote openness and transparency in the administration by enabling citizens to secure access to information under the control of public authorities. As you all are aware, the strengthening of the process of ensuring Executive accountability through a comprehensive Committee System has enhanced the role of Parliament by providing a new meaning and content to the concepts of parliamentary surveillance.

It will, indeed, be difficult to perceive of any other alternative to parliamentary democracy as the system of governance of our country. There is a body of opinion which talks of a perceptible decline in the stature of the institution of our Parliament. This is a perception which needs to be looked into in all earnest. As you all know, over the years, the complexion of Parliament has changed with it becoming more representative of a wide cross section of our society. Our Parliament has been extremely responsive to the aspirations of our people in manifold ways. I would assert that in spite of political and ideological differences, there has been consensus and unanimity of opinion in our Parliament with regard to many of the major national issues with the ultimate objective of safeguarding the welfare of the people and the development of the nation.

Friends, what is to be borne in mind is that, ultimately, Parliament is the supreme representative institution of the country. The Houses are composed by representatives elected by the people themselves. Parliamentarians are the harbingers of change in varied ways. The Parliament today is not merely a law-making body. It performs a wide variety of roles, including grievance ventilation and its redressal, moulding of public opinion, ensuring accountability, providing leadership to the society, etc. It also functions as a safety valve, enabling articulation of ideals and issues on its floors, and thus preventing crises situations from spilling over on to the streets. In the process, Parliament helps to inculcate confidence in the people and also to sustain people’s faith in the system.

The passage of the 73rd and 74th Amendments to our Constitution, which is a step towards decentralization, has created a new horizon for direct democracy and social transformation. Through this silent revolution of establishing grassroots democracy in India, people have now an opportunity to raise their voice and find place in the developmental process. The greatest of benefits which local self-governance offers to the people, to my mind, is that a large number of women, dalits and other marginalised classes have come to be part of the processes of decision making and thus of the governance structure. Each Panchayat election throws up many women leaders with active, articulate women backing and supporting them. Thus, a large number of women who had earlier been outside the realm of political participation now have secured a place in elected offices in the local bodies in rural as well as urban India. This poses a new challenge for us to ensure that their capacities and skills are consistently upgraded and they are adequately prepared to face the challenges that lie ahead of them. This assumes special importance when many of the schemes implemented by the Government for poverty alleviation and for provision of education, health, water supply and other basic services to the people, have been placed under the domain of the Panchayati Raj Institutions.

We need to urgently look into many other issues to preserve and protect democracy. To my mind, of particular importance is imparting education to our people. All efforts should be made to root out illiteracy from the country. With literacy and education, we can build an informed electorate and an informed democracy. With it will also come leaders of character and calibre; we will also be able to secure gender parity, empowerment, and respect for dissent. An informed public will also be more civic conscious and will contribute towards sustainable development, environmental protection and population-related problems. They will also be fully conscious of their rights as also of their duties to the nation.

In the changing world of globalization, we would do well to guard against its negative impact. While we go in for economic reforms, we should ensure that such measures are consistent with our national interests and are implemented with a human face. Our national interests should also bear upon our relations with the rest of the world, especially with our neighbours and the developing world. India has always championed the cause of peace, progress and democracy everywhere and has been in the forefront in voicing the concerns of the developing world. We should continue to play a proactive role vis-à-vis the global community in our best national interests and in the interest of a larger, less exploitative and peaceful world order .

Friends, the thrust of democracy as a form of governance should be, among other things, on empowering people. If we talk of deepening democracy, we must meet the central challenge of strengthening the key institutions of democratic governance and promoting democratic politics. We need to focus our attention specially on expanding the capabilities of our people to realize their full potential by extending health-care, value-based education and increased employment opportunities. We shall be on the way to further consolidate democracy when our people are convinced of the efficacy of the core institutions and instrumentalities of our democratic political society like the Legislatures, elections, electoral laws and political leadership.

There are a number of institutional, policy and behavioural changes which make for democratic consolidation. Improved governance can be achieved by strengthening state capacity, rationalizing economic structures with a human face, eradicating corruption, by securing social and political order while maintaining basic freedoms, improving horizontal accountability and the Rule of Law. The process of consolidation of democracy gets accelerated with the improvement in the representative functions of democratic governance, enhancement of public accountability of Legislatures and local self-governments, and with the active participation of the civil society and the cooperation of a truly free, vigilant and responsible media. All organs of the State – the Legislature, the Executive and the Judiciary, and its Fourth Estate, the Media – have to endeavour in harmony to secure and safeguard democracy. In particular, the constitutional scheme of separation of powers and checks and balances should be preserved. Each organ would do well to respect the others’ jurisdiction and responsibilities and function within the constitutionally ordained scheme of things.

The Legislature and the Media are two of the pivotal pillars on which rests the edifice of a parliamentary democracy. We have the freedom of Press implicit in the fundamental right of the "freedom of speech and expression" guaranteed to the citizens under article 19(1)(a) of our Constitution. We have extended various facilities to the Media persons to enable them to cover the proceedings of the Parliament in a true and non-partisan manner. Further, the televising and broadcasting of proceedings have brought the institution of Parliament nearer to the people. It is this recognition that made us start two separate channels for the live telecast of the proceedings of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha recently. It is of crucial importance that Parliament and the media work together, taking advantage of the developments in the field of information and communication technologies, to help evolve an informed citizenry and an informed democracy.

Friends, as I said earlier, we still have a long way to go in realizing the vision of our Founding Fathers. We need to continue to strive hard to make our democracy relevant for large sections of our people. We should not, however, let our failings and failures dampen our enthusiasm for democracy. Sustaining democracy we must address the concerns of the common people and celebrate our success in consolidating democracy. The negative public perception of politics and of those in public life should not be permitted to cloud the minds of the younger generations. They should be made aware of the enduring promise of democracy and of their important role in preserving and nurturing the same by their active participation in the political processes. The dialogue on democracy should be an endless one, because the self-corrective nature of democracy enables it to overcome the challenges before the system.

Parliamentary Democracy in our country faces many challenges, both internal and external. Of prime importance is the quality and calibre of our leaders and the integrity of our system. It is said that in the early years of a Republic, it is the leaders who create institutions, but later these institutions are expected to provide leaders. It is our good fortune that we have had outstanding leaders to guide our nascent Republic who built and bequeathed to us our institutions of governance. It is now for us, who are working these institutions, to provide leaders for the future generations. The integrity of our institutions as also of our leaders will be a crucial factor determining the future of democracy in the country. If lack of integrity and indiscipline creep in to our institutions and leaders, our democracy will flounder. If integrity becomes the hallmark of our system as a whole, we will continue to hold our head high among the comity of nations as the largest working democracy in the world.

Every citizen of our country should be made to feel that he or she is an important part of our democratic functioning and has a role in strengthening the system of parliamentary democracy. Transparency and probity should permeate the functioning of each and every organ and authority in the country. Corruption, in all its forms, has to be fought relentlessly and weeded out. There has to be exemplary behaviour on the part of all functionaries – be they part of the Executive or Legislature or the Judiciary.

The legislators in our country have the special responsibility of respecting adequately and faithfully the verdict of the people, who are the real masters in a democracy. If they themselves show lack of effective and dignified commitment to parliamentary behaviour and are perceived to be self-seekers and unconcerned about the discharge of their responsibility, the people, specially the youth who are our future leaders, will lose faith in the system as a whole, resulting ultimately in total chaos which, in turn, will be the harbinger of authoritarianism, the ultimate victims of which again will be the people themselves.

I call upon all concerned to try their best to ensure that our democratic institutions, particularly, the Parliament and the Assemblies, collectively function, as the most important bodies representing the people, and the individual Members discharge their duties in a dignified manner, as the custodians of the people’s faith in the largest parliamentary democracy in the world. Our laws should also contain adequate provisions to deal with legislators who fail to live up to the expectations of the people and indulge in demeaning behaviour ignoring norms of probity and rectitude. I urge all to consider whether we should not give to our people the right to recall their elected representative/s, if the situation so demands.

Today the people and the Parties are increasingly talking of what is called " the criminalisation of politics", but hardly do anything to remove the stigma from our body politic. I appeal to all political parties not to involve any one, perceived to have questionable antecedents, in the electoral process. At the same time, it is essential that our justice system should ensure that no one in public life be made targets of mischievous and untenable charges and allegations and, if so charged, should be able to get redressal at the earliest so as not to deny them their legitimate right of participation in the political processes.

Our justice-delivery system, particularly, the criminal justice system, has an important role to play in cleansing our body politic. Mounting cases and slow movement of the judicial process make for a distressing scenario where pendency becomes the order of the day. Lamenting the state of affairs, the late Nani Palkhiwala once said; I quote:

If I were asked to mention the greatest drawback of the administration of justice in India today, I would say that it is delay … . Our cases drag over a length of time which makes eternity intelligible. The law may or may not be an ass, but in India it is certainly a snail and our cases proceed at a pace which would be regarded as unduly slow in a community of snails. Justice has to be blind but I see no reason why it should also be lame: here it just hobbles along, barely able to walk. Unquote.

The right to speedy trial, the Fundamental Right spelt out by the Supreme Court, under Article 21 of the Constitution, has been unable to ensure speedy disposal of cases. More than twenty-five years ago, in 1979, the Supreme Court, in the Hussainara Khatoon v. State of Bihar case, made it clear that "speedy trial is of essence to criminal justice and there can be no doubt that the delay in trial by itself constitutes denial of justice". To my mind, such gross delay in justice delivery tantamount to denial of justice, ultimately undermining the concept of Rule of Law itself. This is an aspect which cannot brook any further delay in finding solution. Otherwise, our law-enforcement system itself will come into question. Autonomous bodies like the CBI cannot function effectively, if its efforts remain inconclusive. As no innocent citizen should be harassed or hounded, a guilty person should not go unpunished either because of our dilatory criminal justice delivery system.

We have to build up new institutions and strengthen the existing ones to tackle effectively, if not to eliminate, the serious aberrations and distortions in our society. Corruption, favouritism, lack of probity and misuse of authority – are some of the many problems hindering the country’s progress and development and accentuating the peoples’ woes. The country has to declare a war against such anti-people activities and cannot afford to make any compromises. In this endeavour, organization like the CBI has to play its assigned role with steadfast determination and commitment. The reputation of CBI as an efficient organization is not only to be maintained but enhanced by result-oriented activities. It should be a tool for fighting against crime and misdemeanors to cleanse the society, and not for perpetuating injustice and victimization.

Today a substantial section of our population as also the Members of our Parliament belong to the post-independence generation . It is important for them to remember that great sacrifices of generations before them had gone into our struggle for freedom and in laying the institutional foundations of our Republic. W e should not undermine their importance by promoting hatred, negativism and divisiveness among our people and by weakening our institutions of governance. Only in the hands of a united and an eternally vigilant citizenry’ will our democracy be safe. A great responsibility is thus cast upon all of us in sustaining Parliamentary democracy, our freedom and democratic rights, and, more than anything else, in sustaining our people’s faith in the institutions of our democracy. If we all faithfully discharge those responsibilities, nothing can ever undermine it. Reminding the American youth of the value of their Constitution for posterity, one of the greatest American Jurists, Mr. Joseph Story, said, I quote:

Let the American youth never forget that they possess (in their Constitution) a noble inheritance, bought by the toils and sufferings and blood of their ancestors and capable, if wisely improved, and faithfully guarded, of transmitting to their latest posterity all the substantial blessings of life, the peaceful enjoyment of liberty, property, religion, and independence… . It may, nevertheless, perish in an hour by the folly, or corruption, or negligence of its only keepers, THE PEOPLE. Republics are created …by the virtue, public spirit, and intelligence of the citizens. They fall, when the wise are banished from the public councils, because they dare to be honest, and the profligate are rewarded, because they flatter the people, in order to betray them. Unquote.

This is an eternal message and applies to all democracies.

The late D.P. Kohli, while addressing CBI Officers once said, and I quote: "The public expects the highest standards from you both in efficiency and integrity. That faith has to be sustained." I believe what D.P. Kohli told your colleagues holds equally true for all of us who are part and parcel of the governance structure of the country. Should efficiency and integrity and commitment to larger national causes permeate all our actions, as emphasized by late D.P. Kohli, we can rest assured that our parliamentary democracy will have a very safe, secure and resplendent future and, through it, our country, full of talent and opportunities, can occupy the topmost position in the comity of nations.

Thank you for your patient hearing.