The IAGB India Day celebrations at the Hatch Shell attracts a variety of vendors, nonprofits, products and services so it came as a surprise to see an organization that was promoting a party in India. Intrigued we checked out the party called Loksatta and met its volunteers Vinod Bandi, Manasa Mahathi, Satish Reddy, Jagadish Gattu, Satish Gandham, Sameer Mellacheruvu, Seshu, Arun Janapala, Bhavani Bandi and Jaidev Gandham. Jagadish Gattu one of its members later sent us responses to the party's agenda, its goal and its aspirations.

  To readers unfamiliar with LokSatta in the US give us a background about the party, the people behind the movement and how it came to being?

The present political and governance culture in India has reduced the hard-earned Surajaya (good governance) to Swaha-raj (Govt. for self) where public good has become merely incidental to the fulfillment of vested interests of a distorted political culture. Even after 63 years of independence, majority of the population lacks basic infrastructure for human development; as per the UN Human Development Index (Dec. 2008) India is ranked 132nd. The situation is dire and there is a pressing need to build a credible, just, and equitable society that provides dignity, justice, and opportunities for all.

 We're a group of passionate individuals, spread all over USA in thousands, like millions of other Indians who want to see India changed. We believe India needs good governance to unravel its potential, a government, which is for the people and to the people, not just by the people. 

 We are looking for a movement or party or platform that is on the forefront for:

• 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 their position at birth
• Elimination of 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.

Who founded the Loksatta Party?

We found the movement in Lok Satta Party, led by the able, sincere, and fearless Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan, a doctor by profession, an IAS officer by choice who quit his career after realizing that faulty governance process is the biggest hurdle in India's path of progress. Lok Satta Party was formed in response to the demand that India needs a new political culture challenging the current style of politics, and heralding new politics for the new generation.
A healthy democracy requires a civil and mature political process, and this can only happen with the active participation of its citizens. Problems do not get solved in thin air or by keeping away from the basic democratic responsibilities, but are solved by the dedication and ingenuity of the concerned citizens who place the interest of all above that of the vested interests, so that all can benefit from the right processes and policies. The problems of our people are massive but they are neither insurmountable nor unsolvable. We can solve them ourselves with the right ideas and the will to address them.  We are calling all concerned citizens to unite behind the party and bring the change India needs. Peopleforloksatta organization (a non profit IRS 527 political organization) was formed in USA to be able to unite all NRIs who believe in bringing this fundamental governance transformation in India.

Website: http://www.peopleforloksatta.org

US mailing group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/loksatta_usa/

      Share with us the main agenda that the party puts forward?

Lok Satta Party was formed with the goal of creating new politics for a new generation of Indians. For Lok Satta, power is a means to promote public good, and not an end in itself.  Lok Satta believes that elections are about the people and their future, and not just about candidates and parties.

Lok Satta is placing before the people irrevocable and specific pledges to which the party is fully committed. It will be the primary task of Lok Satta government to fulfil these pledges in full measure. Lok Satta’s main goals are:

• Eliminating all forms of discrimination by birth through ensuring opportunities for quality education, healthcare, skills and employment.
• Enhancing incomes in agriculture and other traditional occupations.
• Improving quality of life by creating basic amenities in all rural and urban settlements.
• Establishing truly empowered and effective district and local governments and decentralizing power.
• Promoting full transparency and accountability at all levels of governance.
• Establishing rule of law and ensuring that all people are treated equally without favouratism or discrimination.
• Ensuring social justice by building a new society in which a child’s future is not determined by birth, caste, family, region, religion or wealth.
• Utilizing public resources fully and properly.
• Eliminating corruption.

For more information please refer to the following link:

http://www.loksatta.org/cms/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=130&Itemid=62

    How do you differentiate yourself with existing parties in India?

Traditional politics in India take advantage of the poverty, ignorance and helplessness of the bulk of the people. Vote buying, distributing liquor, arousing animosities on sectarian grounds, enticing people with short-term sops and freebies, running politics as big business, abusing public office and trust for private gain, indulging in dynastic politics – all of these are endemic to our political crisis.

Lok Satta is striving to change the rules of the game by adopting and practicing internal democracy, transparent resource mobilization and utilization, national public policies and democratic methods of mobilizing public opinion, enhancing the liberty of all sections. It will be the duty of a future Lok Satta government to introduce specific policies and programs to implement this agenda of governance. Meanwhile, it is the responsibility of Lok Satta Party to design these policies and programs, and mobilize public opinion in support of them.

     Why is the presence of the party important in the US context and with Indian Americans?

It is natural that every Indian hopes for the betterment of the mother land wherever one lives. The number of NRIs in USA is significant and we believe they can make a huge impact and difference in the direction of the country. We see that many NRIs are already working hard to make a difference through several channels (volunteering for NGO organizations, donating money for NGO projects, providing support to their own families, making investments in India, becoming entrepreneurs in India, etc.). Whatever path one takes, and how much ever effort one puts, unless we have good governance, India cannot realize the full benefits of these efforts. This is where India lacks and NRIs needs to take initiative in political process and work for a CHANGE back home. Remember that many great leaders like Gandhi, Ambedkar, are all once NRIs and by working together we believe that we can bring a change in our vibrant, but flawed democracy.

 Please see http://www.peopleforloksatta.org/activities for list of NRI activities and support NRI voting rights.

     Loksatta talk about abolition of the caste system. Do you have any specific plan to achieve this?  This age old system has been there for centuries!

Discrimination by birth is still prevalent in our society and is a powerful source of inequality and internal strife. The current political culture exploits this by dividing our people further for narrow political gains with temporary and short-sighted solutions. Discrimination by birth is uncivilized, undemocratic and violates basic human rights. Lok Satta will start a reform movement to remove discrimination by birth and to build a unified society.

• Lok Satta government will guarantee equal opportunities for growth to all, irrespective of caste, religion, gender, and financial status.
• Lok Satta government will work tirelessly to abolish caste within one generation.
• School, College and University educational records will not refer to the caste of the individual, except in the case of beneficiaries from schemes pertaining to SC, ST and BC.
• Lok Satta Government will ensure that students from all castes live together in hostels. All government constructions will ensure that people belonging to different castes stay together.
• Abolition of caste will figure prominently in school education and necessary changes will be made to the curriculum. This will pave the way for emergence of a non-discriminatory society.
• Irrespective of caste and religion, all children and youth from poor families will be given 10% bonus marks at the time of entrance examinations, higher education and employment. This will ensure an equal playing field for the disadvantaged to compete with children from richer sections of the society.
• Special incentives for inter-caste married couples and their children.
• Lok Satta Government will create an asset for the poor from the discriminated sections.
• Modernization of various professions to enhance incomes, and ensure respect and opportunities for all who practice them.
• Special efforts will be taken by Lok Satta Party for the political empowerment of discriminated castes and sections.

     What have you achieved so far?

 The specific and tangible achievements and impact of Lok Satta's work are manifold and varied. Perhaps it's most vital contribution lies within the creation of awareness amongst the population about the need for fundamental governance transformation in our vibrant, but flawed democracy. Some of Lok Satta’s notable achievements in this regard are:

Governance Reforms:

Right to Information Act (1997 - 2005): Lok Satta's research, advocacy and citizens' campaign efforts in collaboration with other leading civil society organizations MKSS and NCPRTI helped achieve a comprehensive and universal right to access public information, in June 2005.

Establishment of Local Courts (1997-2005): Lok Satta's advocacy campaign for establishment of Local Courts with simple procedures has led the Indian Government to announce the tabling of a bill in the Winter Session of 2005, to this effect.

Citizen's Charters in Andhra Pradesh (1997-2001): Lok Satta launched the 'Swarajya' movement in 1998 to empower citizens by prompting authorities to provide improved public service. This movement led to the establishment of 700 citizen charters in various government departments in the country.

Electoral Reforms

Post Offices as Nodal Agencies (1998 - 2004): Following six-year long advocacy campaign

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