HYDERABAD: The criminal antecedents of the contesting candidates, cutting across all the political parties in the ensuing elections, should be widely publicised to enable the people to make informed decisions before exercising their franchise, opined speakers at a round table conference on ‘Elections - Selection of Candidates’ organised by Forum For Good Governance (FFGG), here on Monday.
Retired IAS and IPS officers, bureaucrats and activists also discussed the ground reality of how “megalomaniacs” are being forayed into politics in their nearly three-hour-long deliberation. Speaking to TNIE, on the sidelines of the conference, FFGG secretary M Padmanabha Reddy said that they have decided to appeal to all the heads of the political parties not to give tickets to people with criminal antecedents, and to allocate 30 per cent of the seats to women.
Money and muscle power
Expressing serious concerns over the money and muscle power in politics, Lok Satta Party (LSP) founder-president Jayaprakash Narayan said decentralisation of power, governance in accordance with the law, and revolutionary changes in the entire election system will bring change in 20 to 25 years. He said that money, caste, family, megalomania, and unapologetic loyalty to high command have become the qualities to be the election candidates.
“On the one hand, we speak about ‘religious spirituality’, and on the other, the demagogues have developed a lust for power. They have developed an inferiority complex of not being recognised by the people if not in the ranks of power, and thus holding a powerful position is the ultimate goal,” Jayaprakash Narayan said.