The entry of criminals into politics must be stopped. Unscrupulous politicians rely on black money? We must stop, or even diminish, the use of bribery in government commercial deals. Can we succeed? The answer must be “No”, so long as India's politicians and political parties cannot survive without the injection of illegal funds.
It was a different era when India fought for independence from British colonial rule. The giants of the freedom movement were those who were successful in their own professions or calling. What mattered then were education, integrity, talent and capacity to serve the nation. You first earned an honest living before people accepted you as a leader.
The scenario changed almost overnight as India became free. Before he could lay moral standards for an independent India, we killed Gandhiji. Jawaharlal Nehru soon found that politics in free India was becoming dependent on donations from large industrial houses. Perhaps he closed his eyes to the manner in which the Congress party's financial managers collected money. Alarm bells were ringing even then. An early defence scam, the jeep scandal emerged as did the Mundhra affair.
But that era has passed. A new leadership emerged and with it came strange shady characters, which seemed to have a remarkable influence on matters of State and on the State's leaders. Extra-constitutional power centres flourished. A “kitchen cabinet” was said to surround Indira Gandhi. Established political norms faded, and following the break-up of the Indian National Congress, the politics of big money moved in to prop up the new Congress.