While everyone has been animatedly supporting Anna Hazare's fight against corruption, people seem to have forgotten who the people are who actually led to this situation.
The peak of irony was when Anna was, allegedly, lodged in the same jail
that housed the people who were responsible for two of the biggest
scams in the country ever. How must the authorities have felt when they
saw Raja and Kalmadi fill their plates while Anna was on a fast because
of their misdeeds?
Corruption has become an unavoidable part of politics and every now and then, one or the other politician re-affirms this fact.
Here is our pick of the 10 most corrupt politicians of India.
Suresh Kalmadi
Suresh Kalmadi,
almost single handedly caused a loss of hundreds of crores of rupees to
the country. The Commonwealth Games, organized by Kalmadi was no less
than a loot with numerous reports of the magnum opus event being soaked
in corruption making headlines way before the Games had even started.
Apparently, out of Rs. 70000 crores spent on the Games, only half of the
amount was actually spent. Owing to his involvement in the scam,
Kalmadi was charged with corruption and sent to Tihar jail.
A. Raja
A scam worth Rs. 176,000 crore had former Union Cabinet Minister for
Communications and Information Technology, Andimuthu Raja at the centre.
A. Raja as he is generally called, was the prime accused in the 2G
spectrum scam, which was the largest that the country had seen in a long
time. Following the shocking exposure, Raja was indicted and forced to
resign. Presently, he is too has been lodged at the Tihar jail and is
awaiting his trial.
Mayawati
Mayawati has always been criticized for ostentatious display of power
in her state. She has allegedly used her status as chief minister to
amass large amounts of personal wealth. She was charged with corruption
when the Taj Heritage Corridor Case was uncovered. Mayawati's birthdays
have always been media events, where she usually appears decked in
diamond jewellery and also accepts public donations for which, she often
comes under fire. Her assets are worth millions of dollars and in the
year 2007-08, she had paid an income tax of Rs. 26 crores, which placed
her amongst the top 20 taxpayers of the year.
Lalu Prasad Yadav
The fact that Lalu Prasad Yadav has been an accused in 63-odd cases
serves for the fact that Lalu stands as one of the strongest competitor
in the list. The biggest scam that rocked Lalu's political career
was the fodder scam which involved the embezzlement of Rs. 950 crore
approximately. The accusation of nepotism against him has come up time
and again but hardly any action has been taken against him owing to his
'connections' in the government.
Madhu Koda
Former Jharkand Chief Minister, and only the third independent
legislator to assume the office of chief minister in India, Madhu Koda
was responsible for a scam worth over Rs. 4000 crore. The man exploited
the state's natural resources by licensing illegal mining leases and
stashing away the wealth amassed during the undertaking. Furthermore,
the Maoists received a 30% share of the booty. Koda was arrested on
charges of money laundering and is still in prison following the
rejection of numerous bail applications.
Mulayam Singh Yadav
Mulayam Singh Yadav is also known as one of the most corrupt ministers
in the country despite not being directly involved in any major scams.
Apart from his name being involved in appointments of tainted officers
and mishandling of his power as chief minister, Mulayam Singh had one
major allegation levelled against him– accumulation of disproportionate
assets. The case drew limelight on his sons and daughter-in-law as they
too were holders of the assests that amounted to crores of rupees.
Karunanidhi
The corruptions charges against M. Karunanidhi are so many that he is
often referred to as the king or emperor of corruption. He was accused
of lending support to the LTTE and was indicted for abetting the LTTE in
the interim report which oversaw the investigation into Rajiv Gandhi's
assassination.
Karunanidhi reportedly institutionalized corruption in the South. He
was a leading player in the cash for votes scams that are common in the
southern region, as well as notorious foe extreme nepotism shown under
his rule. Not so surprising, is the fact that the main accused in the 2G
scam, A, Raja, considers him to be his mentor.
Sharad Pawar
Very few people can miss the cosy relationship that Sharad Pawar shares
with power and money.Every now and then, Pawar draws flak for alleged
investments made by him and his family in various illegal projects. He
was named by Abdul Karim Telgi, during a narcoanalysis test, stating
that it was Pawar's brainchild to print fake stamp papers across the
country and mint money. He was also accused in a multi-crore scam
involving wheat imports and institutions headed by him and his close
associates were served notices by the Bombay High Court for showing
favoritism to his family.
Jayalalithaa
The Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu has a staggering 46 corruption cases
against her. Amongst the various scams were the Rs. 70 million coal
import scam, Tansi land deal case, case of disproportionate assets and
colour TV case, amongst many others. A raid in her residence and
business establishments led to the seizure of some 28 kg of jewellery
(worth Rs 51 crore), 91 wrist-watches,
41 air-conditioners, 10,500 sarees, 750 pairs of footwears, etc. She
along with her former cabinet colleagues and senior bureaucrats who
worked with her are still facing investigation with regard to
corruption.
BS Yeddyurappa
The most recent politician
to be caught in the web of corruption is former Chief Minister of
Karnataka, B. S. Yeddyurappa. While he has a number of corruption lying
against him, the one that toppled his career was his alleged involvement
in the illegal iron ore export scam in districts of Karnataka. A lot of
blame game followed and ended up with Yeddyurappa losing his
ministerial post last month. Despite his denial, his image as one of the
most corrupt politicians of the country will not fade anytime soon.
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