Editorial
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| | Crisis of governance | | Total lack of accountability, transparency and concern for citizens rights and needs | | There can be no denying the fact that peace and normalcy in the State cannot be ensured without a just and lasting solution of the Kashmir problem, taking into account both the political aspirations of the people of the State belonging to different regions and areas and the overall interests of both India and Pakistan. Though the composite dialogue process between the two neighbouring countries is continuing at slow speed, despite frequent interruptions, there still appears to be no progress as far as the Kashmir problem is concerned. The fly in the ointment is that without taking the people of the State on board and without putting an end to all human rights abuses, no just and democratic solution of the vexed problem is possible. Even on the question of much desired confidence building measures relating to J&K the two governments have not moved forward.
What, however, has aggravated the situation is the abject failure of the Omar Abdulllah –led coalition to deliver both in respect of human rights and socio-economic development. Despite generous help from New Delhi the people continue to suffer due to miss-governance, rather non-governance. The State administration is virtually in a state of paralysation. While corruption is mounting day by day, in the absence of any institutional mechanism to root it out, the developments activities have come to halt. The situation in regard to the basic needs of the people like food, electricity, water supply, sanitation, environment, healthcare and roads etc has worsened during the past three years. Not that the previous regimes were able to solve all the people’s problems and fulfill their basic needs or restore people’s democratic rights but on all accounts the present government has proved to be the worst.
While, the chief minister and his government have been richest in rhetoric, they have proved to be poorest in performance. There is total disconnect between the rulers and the ruled. Omar Abdullah headed hotch-potch government- a marriage of convenience- not only lacks cohesion and homogeneity but is also devoid of any vision. It even lacks common sense. There has been sharp divergence in their percepts and practices. The ministry lacks both collective functioning and collective responsibility. The ministers are running their own empires in most autocratic and arbitrary manner, violating all norms and rules while the bureaucrats are having their own way freely.
There are reasons to believe that those in authority, both at political and bureaucratic level, have a vested interest to perpetuate this kind of situation and subvert all moves for making governance accountable, transparent and responsive to the people’s demands and needs, improving its capacity to deliver. That explains why the recommendations made by the Working Group on ensuring good governance have been ignored by the present rulers. Nothing has been done to bring systemic changes in the working of the government and to create credible institutions for putting an end to corruption, inefficiency and arbitrariness. Even the existing institutions like the State Accountability Commission, Information Commission and Human Rights Commission have been made redundant. It is even dragging feet on the question of making the proposed vigilance commission functional.
The government failure on the vital question of democratic decentralization both to empower the people and accelerate the socio-economic development, remove disparities and eliminate complaints of discrimination, is even more glaring. Its resistance to constitutionally provide a four-tier system of governance as well as its failure to hold elections to the local bodies flow from its lack of faith in the people and concern to concentrate power for self-aggrandizement. |
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