Hegde agonised at governments disdain on Lokpal

UDUPI: “We (Jan Lokpal activists) never demanded the government to invite us to Parliament to debate on the issue. We did not force the government to pass the draft Bill. We only wanted to discuss the issue of the Jan Lokpal Bill with government representatives. But people in the government raised a hue and cry against us,” said Karnataka Lokayukta N Santhosh Hegde.He was speaking at an interaction with students, held under the auspices of Consumer Forum, Udupi, at Ambalpady Sri Janardana and Mahakali Temple, here on Monday.“They ask who are you to question us. We are the citizens of this nation and have rights under Article 19 1 A, B and C of the Indian Constitution to question the government.So an elected government does not have the right to ask a citizen “Who are you”, on the other hand we ask the government or the elected representative “what are doing there,” he said. It is a tragedy that the governments in a participatory democracy have become government “by some, of some and for some”. Politics has become a profession, as the MPs and MLAs have been increasing their salaries very often, he added.Hegde said, “Today if you allege a politician of being corrupt, instead of denying it he would point at the person who alleged him of being corrupt, by saying “you are also corrupt”.Managing Trustee of Sri Janardana and Mahakali Temple Dr Vijay Ballal inaugurated the programme.Later, Justice Hegde also inaugurated the district level second building of the Lokayukta in the state.