Of late the rhetoric to fight corruption in India has increased considerably; to the extent that corruption is now perceived as a threat to India’s national security. It is about time that the public consciousness against corruption is stirred into taking a more proactive position against this peril. The need for public participation against corruption is fundamental especially in a context where the degree of corruption is so acute, that corrupt practices have become part of the cultural and societal norm. As a result severe corruption is pervasive and occurs randomly across all sections of the society, creating a culture of impunity. The Indian experience like most other developing countries in the Southern Hemisphere has adequately demonstrated this particular characteristic of corruption and it would take more than political rhetoric and legal action to fight it. In this context, to successfully overcome corruption means to simultaneously engage and transform society itself.
The Naga experience has revealed the chronic nature of corruption and though its history in the Naga context is as recent as four decades, the result has proved devastating. For the Nagas that were once known and respected for values such as integrity and honesty, the practice of corruption has had a demoralizing effect on the people, so much so that most ordinary people now perceive corruption as something they just learn to live and accept it. The chronic practice of corruption has become so alarming that most of the people have just resigned to it and have become overwhelmed by cynicism that they fail to explore solutions to overcome corruption. Furthermore, in a context of continuous armed conflict for many generations, the crisis of corruption seems to be the least of the worries for the people. Yet, it’s the conflict situation that is breeding corruption; and it is corruption that is causing the moral decay in the Naga society.
Today, the issue of corruption can no longer be avoided nor denied. It’s a social disease in which every individual must take responsibility for. Today the chronic state of corruption in the Naga context is negating the rich Naga heritage, imprisoning the present and destroying the future. Because corruption in the Naga context has assumed a collective and societal demeanor, even initiating a public discourse around corruption becomes problematic, even though there is a general acknowledgement that corruption is enveloping the Nagas. The answer therefore is more than just legal actions. While it is true that the legal course of action is required in very specific cases, it must be recognized that the collective character of corruption in Nagaland demands more than just a legal recourse, it demands a judicious interplay of societal transformation and justice.
