Lok Satta Party in the Election Battle 2008. Read the latest issue of Lok Satta Times- May 2008 edition.

Eschew foul public debate, Appeals Dr. JP

Hyderabad, May 6

Lok Satta Party President Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan said today that there could not be a greater disgrace in the land of Gandhi and Ambedkar than politicians indulging foul language against each other in public debate. He appealed to all parties to exercise restraint and elevate public discourse.

He was commenting on the polemical exchanges between TDP leader Devender Goud and TRS President K. C. Chandrasekhara Rao, and Chief Minister Dr. Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy and the TDP President N. Chandrababu Naidu, and other leaders in the recent past.

The Lok Satta always believed that politics is a noble endeavor. Elections provided an opportunity for political parties to mobilize public opinion in favor of their policies and ideas. But when politics degenerates into private business and political parties are driven by their unbridled lust for power without any agenda, they indulge in personal rivalry, disgraceful public debate and cheap diatribes unbecoming of people aspiring to be or pretending to be leaders. If public functionaries cannot become role models, they have no place in public life, Dr. JP said.

Dr. JP regretted that traditional parties and politicians seemed to believe that they could not survive without the crutches of power or the nuisance value it confers on them. Although politics is important it forms only a small part of life. Unfortunately in India, the entire society is revolving round politics and political parties are receiving disproportionate and unwarranted attention.

Dr. JP said: “Our society is facing grave short-term and long-term problems affording an opportunity to find meaningful solutions. But when parties have no agenda, they indulge in rabble-rousing and disruptive behavior. The media and society shall deprive such politics and politicians the oxygen of publicity and attention. The need of the hour is promoting a healthy and vigorous debate on education, health care, equity, employment, justice, rule of law and corruption in politics”.

Read the Telugu Press Release

Off-beat nominations by Lok Satta candidates

Hyderabad, May 5

Lok Satta Party candidates in the by-elections to the Assembly will be filing their nominations without any pomp or ostentation and demonstrate their party is unique.

Accompanied by their followers attired in party T-shirts and sporting paper caps, the candidates will undertake a ‘padayatra’ to the offices where nominations are to be filed. They will carry national flags as well as party flags to drive home the party’s commitment to national interests.

Mr. Katari Srinivasa Rao, the party candidate for the Khairatabad seat, and Mr. Rohit Kumar Parasa, the candidate for the Musheerabad seat, will be filing their nominations in the forenoon of Wednesday, May 7. Mr. Maganti Pradeep, the candidate for the Secunderabad seat, will be filing his nomination on May 9.

Read the Telugu press release

Dr. JP wants political parties to disclose income and expenditure

Hyderabad, May 1

The Lok Satta Party today welcomed the Central Information Commission’s order that political parties should disclose their income-tax returns on a request filed under the Right to Information Act.

Lok Satta Party President Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan recalled in a media statement that his party has set an example to others by placing an audited copy of its income and expenditure on its website, although no law compelled it. It is because of its belief that the people have a right to know how the party raised its resources and spent them.

Dr. JP demanded that all political parties should follow suit in the interests of democracy. Even the Election Commission would like a law to be enacted making it mandatory for political parties to disclose their sources of funding and ways of expenditure.

In a democracy, Dr. JP said, a political party should not become the private property of some without any say for other members. The Lok Satta Party has been built as a party of the people. It chose its office-bearers and candidates to contest elections by taking the opinion of the rank and file by secret ballot. In contrast, most parties have turned dynastic, undermining democracy in the process.

Dr. JP called upon parties to heed CIC opinion that transparency in political parties’ organization, functions and their means of funding is a democratic imperative and is in public interest.

Read the press release in Telugu

Lok Satta Party's rejoinder to Sakshi's editorial on JP and Lok Satta Party

Please read the Lok Satta Party's rejoinder and clarification to Sakshi's editorial that appeared on 29th April 2008.

Lok Satta Party fields young & educated in Assembly by-elections

The Lok Satta Party is ushering in new political culture by fielding young, educated professionals or entrepreneurs with a clean record and a burning desire to change the politics of the country in the by-elections to the Assembly.

The party is contesting by-elections from Khairatabad, Musheerabad, Secunderabad and Terlam.

Announcing the names of candidates the party is fielding, Lok Satta Party President Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan told a media meet here today that the party is providing a platform to the silent majority to assert itself. The silent majority comprising youth, women and middle classes has been fed up with corrupt and dynastic politics but is feeling helpless in the absence of an alternative platform. The Lok Satta Party is utilizing the elections to present the alternative platform so that the silent majority can unleash a silent revolution.

Dr. JP said the party candidates do not have political Godfathers, money power or muscle power. The party rank and file have chosen them unanimously, impressed by their commitment and dedication to the nation and their impeccable background. In fact, they are people who have excelled in their professions or occupations although they belong to disadvantaged sections. The average age of the contestants is just 31.

The following are the Lok Satta Party candidates:

Khairatabad: Mr. Katari Srinivasa Rao. A Master of Computer Applications, 38-year-old Srinivasa Rao has been serving as an Assistant Professor in Chaitanya Bharati Institute of Technology for the last one decade. The Vice-President of the Greater Hyderabad Lok Satta Party, Mr. Srinivasa Rao has had a sterling record in fighting for public causes including the easing of traffic hassles in the Twin Cities.

Secunderabad: Mr. Maganti Pradeep. Founder of Cogent Techsol Private Limted, 25-year-old Pradeep has trained hundreds of young graduates in the skill sets needed by employers and helped them find placement in the last three years in IT and ITES fields. A Bachelor in Business Administration, Mr. Pradeep underwent training in General Management & Entrepreneurship at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.

Musheerabad: Mr. Rohit Kumar Parasa. A self-made entrepreneur, 33-year-old Rohit is the founder chief of Spring Soft Solutions and Spring Consulting Services, ‘Spring Soft Rohit;, as he is popularly known, has had the distinction of molding the careers of over 2,500 youth of the Twin Cities by providing career counseling and helping them secure rewarding jobs in the IT sector.

Terlam: Reddi Lakshmu Naidu. Twenty-seven-year-old Lakshmu Naidu, the son of a two-acre dry land owning farmer, did his Bachelor of Education after obtaining M.A. in English. Instead of taking to teaching, he has chosen to devote his life to bringing about transformation in society by working as a full-time Lok Satta Party volunteer. He has had the distinction of enrolling more than 3000 people as Lok Satta Party members.

Lok Satta to Expose MLAs’ Evil Empire

The Lok Satta Party is training its guns on the evil empire of MLAS as part of a four-month-long ‘Surajya’ campaign from March 31. The campaign seeks to educate and enlighten people on how ‘Swarajya’ has been distorted into a ‘swaharajya’ and galvanize them into action.

The party will be mobilizing nearly 25000 volunteers in April to spread the movement to every nook and corner of the State.

Lok Satta Party General Secretary D. V. V. S. Varma told a media meet here today that MLA Raj has become the kingpin of ‘legal plunder and constitutional brigandage’ in independent India.
“The Lok Satta Party acknowledges that several MLAs are personally clean and honest, and they are helpless victims of a vicious cycle. But the whole corrupt structure of government is symbolized by vote buying and multiple returns on investment, making politics big business and citizens, mere vote banks”.

Said Mr. Varma: “They splurge crores of rupees to buy voters outright or drown them in liquor or dangle other baits. Once in office, MLAs carve out a mini evil empire of their own in the constituency to recoup ten times their investment in the business of politics. Revenue offices, police stations and all Government departments become pawns in their hands. Without the MLA’s note or nod or recommendation, no file moves in offices or a work gets grounded. Projects, roads and buildings contracts, transfers and postings, police cases, houses, pensions and all schemes come in handy for milking people. In the MLA’s empire, panchayats, municipalities and zilla parishads all stand emasculated. The MLA is indeed the fulcrum of ‘swaharajya’. The Lok Satta is determined to expose the MLAs’ evil empire as a prelude to its ‘Surajya’ campaign from March 31”.

Exhibitions and cultural programs will be conducted throughout the State to expose the loot and plunder being indulged in by MLAs. The party plans to enlist 25000 volunteers for a fortnight from April 6 to spread the movement all over the State.

As part of the ‘Surajya’ campaign, the party will organize mega dharnas in front of Government offices between May 15 and 25 demanding curbs on liquor consumption which is playing havoc with people’. The Government itself should run liquor shops in limited numbers, instead of auctioning them with an eye on maximizing revenue.

The party will be conducting a survey on implementation of Government schemes by choosing one village in every district as a prelude to launching a direct action program in August.

Lok Satta Party Launching 'Surajya' Movement

The Lok Satta Party is spearheading a citizens' movement for Surajya beginning from Andhra Pradesh on March 23, 2008 (77th death anniversary of Shaheed Bhagat Singh).

Announcing this here today, Lok Satta Party President Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan (Dr. JP) said that while the Swaraj movement sought freedom from colonial rule, Surajya movement aims to free citizens from the chains of corrupt and distorted rule. While Swaraj movement achieved its objectives through non-violence and non-cooperation, Surajya movement will be based on the power of the vote.

Dr. JP said the Swaraj movement has yielded us self-governance and since independence, significant progress has undoubtedly been made across several fields. "However, the present political and governance culture has reduced this hard-earned Swaraj to Swaha-raj where public good has become merely incidental to the fulfillment of vested interests of a distorted political culture".

Dr. JP said that the nation today faced several critical challenges. They include:

• Eliminating the pervasive and monumental corruption from our society and replacing the notoriously kleptocratic governance culture with a truly citizen-centric one
• Establishing a political culture that is free from criminals and political dynasties
• Ensuring equitable access to quality education, healthcare, and employment opportunities to every citizen irrespective of his or her position at birth
• Eliminating societal discrimination based on caste and creed, and providing genuine opportunities for vertical growth to all sections of society
• Ensuring true devolution of power to local governments, and empowerment of citizens
• Ensuring access to speedy and affordable justice to all sections of society and restoring the rule of law
  

Dr. JP said: "There is a pressing need to build a credible, just, and equitable society that provides dignity, justice, and opportunities for all".

A number of renowned social activists, including Magasasy Award winners, are taking part in the Surajya movement. They include:

:: Anna Hazare
:: Ramesh Raamanathan (Janagraha)
:: Madhu Kishwar (Editor, Manushi)
:: Desikan (Catalyst Trust)
:: Sandeep Pandey
:: M. V. Devasahayam
:: T. N. Seshan
:: Shiv Khera
:: Julius Rebero
:: Arvind Khejriwal

Lok Satta Condemns Attack on Sundaraiah Vignana Kendram

The Lok Satta Party today condemned the attack on Sundaraiah Vignana Kendram and regretted the attempt at damaging the portrait of Sundaraiah, who had earned the affection and admiration of masses.

In a statement, party General Secretary D. V. V. S. Varma said that there is no place for violent, physical attacks and personal recrimination in politics, although there could be ideological clashes.

Mr. Varma said that everyone transcending politics should respect Sundaraiah Vignana Kendram as a distinguished cultural center. All democratic forces should condemn such physical attacks engineered by narrow-minded people to rouse people’s emotions.

He appealed to the Government to arrest the culprits immediately and deal strictly with such evil culture. All parties should focus on promoting constructive politics without stoking feelings of hatred.

Lok Satta leaders Mr. B. Satyanarayana, Mr. Bandaru Rammohan Rao, Mrs. D.Saroja visited Baghligmpally and paid respects at Sri Sundaraiah’s portrait.

Dr. JP Meets his Orkut Friends

Orkut is a social networking site popular amongst youth in India. Youth discovered it is a great way of being connected. One can find long lost friends, stay connected with current friends, and make new friends. One can create communities of their own on any topic of their liking or join existing ones.

Many communities have been created by earnest Orkutters on political topics. The communities have become hotbeds for emerging trends in political thought amongst Indian youth. Youth discuss here wide-ranging political ideas and thoughts. Youth discuss the state of the existing political culture and the need for a change and how we can bring about the change. They discuss the pressing need to combat the menace of corruption in our governance and politics.

Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan and Lok Satta Party are popular among young Orkutters. There are more than 110 communities in Orkut dedicated to Lok Satta Party and Dr. JP. Thousands of youth are members of these communities.

They drum up support for Lok Satta Party and discuss the importance of ensuring to all equal opportunities for growth and ending any discrimination based on birth. They discuss the novel measures introduced by Lok Satta Party that stand testimonial to the party’s commitment to transparency and democracy. Many earnest, erudite youth desiring change participate in these discussions. They have been advocating the need for a New Political Culture in the cyber world.

LSP provided the virtual world Lok Satta Party activists a chance to get involved in the activities of LSP in real.

Dr. JP met his Orkut friends at the party head office at 1:30 pm on Sunday, 9th March and had an interaction with them. There was a lively discussion on the current political scenario in Andhra Pradesh. Dr. JP emphasized the need for youth to take an active part in politics. The youth expressed their support to Lok Satta Party and wished to participate in its activities.

The active members of the party then guided them on how they can get involved in the activities of LSP in their locality.


The meet concluded with the youth taking a pledge for a corruption-free, developed India.