End graft, 14 eminent citizens tell government

In an unprecedented move for India, a group of eminent citizens – including businessmen, bankers and former senior judges – have shot off  ''An open letter to our leaders'' to raise concern about rising corruption which is "corroding the fabric" of the nation.

The group, which includes industrialists and judges, warned of "widespread governance deficit almost in every sphere of national activity". It said on Monday that this letter was the first of many to follow.

The 14 signatories, including Wipro chief Azim Premji, HDFC chairman Deepak Parekh, and former Reserve Bank of India governor Bimal Jalan, has made recommendations to address five issues which they consider critical. These include the speedy setting up of anti-corruption bodies.

The areas of concern for the 'group of 14' are governance deficit, corruption, elected representatives not making a distinction between dissent, disruption, and development.

High-profile sleaze scandals have shaken India in recent months – how deeply can be gauged from the fact that these eminent personalities are not in the habit of writing publicity-seeking 'open letters' in the hope of creating some sort of controversy.

But strangely for a media equally obsessed with government corruption and 'big names' like Premji and Parekh, the letter was not widely played up – only one 'national' paper put it on the front page, as far as domain-b could ascertain.