“I have no sympathy for the bureaucrats” Rita Bahuguna Joshi

In an exclusive meeting with Life Watch, Congress President in Uttar Pradesh, Rita Bahuguna Joshi speaks her mind and heart out on UP’s present state of scenario and woeful condition that the State has witnessed during the past 22 years. Rita herself suffered tremendously because of the prevailing law and order condition in the State when her house was burnt and her car attacked. Read Ms. Bahuguna’s views in first person, as she spoke to Life Watch…
For past 22 years, UP has suffered a lot in terms of governance. Congress party had done a lot for development of State and after we quit the power in 1989, the State has steadily gone down since then. It is very unfortunate that in terms of human development index and in terms of social development index, UP is taking lead from bottom. We are considered worst state in India in terms of education, poverty levels and corruption. Unsocial elements rule the roost and we are considered the most unsafe state in the country.
Unfortunately when the people selected the BJP, they found themselves cheated on emotional and sentimental grounds because of Mandir. They gave Samajwadi a chance and it was money and muscle during that tenure. Corruption was supreme. Now, with Mayawati coming, people feel cheated once again because she had given very high sounding promises to give a clean state. I think she will go down in history as personally the most corrupt politician and a Chief Minister who has headed the most corrupt Government in the country. Now with Rahulji’s entrance and his focus on UP, Congress taking to the street, picking up people’s issue, UPA government’s performance in terms of social welfare programs, programs for the poor, people are once again turning towards Congress and Congress party is working very hard to try to pick up the people’s issues. We are trying to rein in the UP Government on the issue of corruption and misgovernance. Party elections are going on; we are strengthening our cadre. We hope to give a new facelift to the Party and in the next two years we are hopeful of turning the tide in favour of the Congress.
I am very sorry to say that bureaucrats are not doing their duty properly. Executive is considered to be a very strong pillar of democracy. But they have become a team of pshcyophants. They are totally corrupt. Bureaucracy is equally responsible for the plight of the State. I feel very sad that they have not stood by the oath that they had taken to save democracy. There are hardly a handful of bureaucrats whom you can call clean. They are paying money for posting. They are cheating the people. The way people are being looted by the bureaucrats and the Government, they are hand in glove. For 22 years they have been cheating; they have been registered in cases. I have no sympathy for the bureaucrats; we are making a list of corrupt bureaucrats.
The Congress party has governed long enough to know how to carry out the administration. I have seen my father working; if the politician is clean and committed everything can be brought under control.

BRINDA'S BINDAS QUESTIONING

Communist Party of India – Marxist (CPI-M) leader Brinda Karat is known to speak her mind. Barring a few occasions when she had to face rebuke for her outbursts, she has emerged unscathed from her verbal political onslaughts.
A few days ago, while speaking at a news conference in Patna, she accused the Trinamool Congress of providing assistance to the Maoists and said that the party has lost many of its workers to the rebel menace. “In West Bengal, with the support of Trinamool Congress, the rebels harass and killed more than 100 of our poor and backward party workers,” she said. Not to be left behind, Trinamool Congress too has lately been accusing CPI-M of having a truck with the rebels.
Not long ago, Brinda Karat was in the firing line in Rajya Sabha when she dubbed the entire Hindu community as fundamentalist. This led to a serious uproar against her, with several opposition leaders aiming their guns against her.
Members of the Bharatiya Janata Party disrupted proceedings in the Upper House as Karat read out a confessional statement allegedly given by a riot-accused, who had conceded that Hindu fundamentalists were behind the incidents of violence in Malegaon.
Amidst the pandemonium, the House was adjourned.
"She made a sweeping statement against Hindus. She is a Hindu herself and this kind of statement was not expected from her," former finance minister Yashwant Sinha commented.
The then Science and Technology and Ocean Development Minister Kapil Sibal said, "Criminals are criminals; no matter which religion they come from. And hence the whole community should not be personally identified."
These are not just two stray examples. Brinda Karat was also in news recently for demanding arrest of Google India chief. “The chief of the Google India should be arrested and prosecuted immediately”, she had said. This demand was made because the site allegedly hosted advertisements related to pre-natal sex determination in violation of law.Karat said the Government had earlier issued a warning to Google in this regard but the site has again started putting sponsored advertisements about clinics doing pre-natal tests.
She sought to know why the ministry of IT & Communication is not taking any action against Google for the violation of the provisions of Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PNDT) Act asking whether it is "connivance or callousness" on the part of the government.
Under the Act, any entity indulging in sex determination advertisements is liable for imprisonment and fine. Karat expressed concern over the plummeting sex ratio in the country and nine lakh girl children going missing.
Some time back, Brinda Karat was in the news for an altogether different reason. She took up cudgels against the Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and sought the reopening of Ruchika’s molestation case. More recently, she was heard speaking against the Muslim clerics who were against the reservation for women.
And the most recent issue that Brinda has raised is related to a Kashmiri youth Syed Maqbool Shah, who was arrested for his alleged role in Lajpat Nagar bomb blasts in 1996 and has been languishing in jail for past 14 years. The courts have found that his man was not guilty and released him. Brinda has said the Government should compensate this youth with a Government job and compensation as he had to spent 14 years of his prime time behind bars for no fault of his own.
But the real brick-lashing is reserved for Trinamool chief, Mamata Banerjee, unmindful that the fiery lady is quick to respond. Known for her angry retorts, Mamata Banerjee couldn’t contain her anger recently when Brinda lashed out against the callous approach of the Railway authorities. It so happened that a train carrying disabled from Kolkata to Delhi had no water in several coaches and reached Delhi more than 12 hours late. When Brinda complained, Mamata retaliated, further igniting the love-hate relationship that the two ladies share between each other.