Oscar Wilde has one his characters declare in Lady Windermere’s Fan, “I can resist anything but temptation.” The temptation to enter the debate on the Anna Hazare controversy is too great to resist despite several weeks having elapsed since it started. In the meantime, the chasm between the protagonists of Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption campaign and those holding it to be unconstitutional and undemocratic has widened. The latter argue that the correct forum for debating the Lokpal Bill is Parliament. Yielding to public agitations, however laudable their objectives, will establish an unhealthy precedent. On the other hand, the protagonists point out that Parliament is dysfunctional and will not act until it is compelled. The rapid enlargement of this agitation to acquire an all-India character reveals that public corruption has become so pervasive in India as to evoke national exasperation. Anna Hazare is a beacon of hope now.
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