The Lok Pal agitation brought out another important aspect of our democracy. There is now a greater awareness about an important institutional mechanism called the standing committee, and other nuances about the law making process. Of course, in many cases some of these impressions about our MPs are largely formed by what the media channels tend to project, and without a full appreciation of what actually happens in Parliament. What was even more important about the debate is that it was watched by thousands of people across the country many of whom have lost faith in the ability of our MPs to coherently articulate their point of view on substantive issues. The debate in Parliament in response to the recent Anna Hazare led agitation demanding a strong Lok Pal Bill was a fine hour for the institution of Parliament. The following piece by C V Madhukar appeared in the September,2011 issue of Governance Now magazine.
