Coming down heavily on the government, social activist Anna Hazare on Sunday said nothing was being done to protect the whistleblowers who play a crucial role in fighting corruption.
Families of several whistleblowers who lost their lives in the fight against corruption turned up at Mr. Hazare's day-long fast at Jantar Mantar here.
Team Anna said at least 15 people who tried to expose wrongdoing within organisations have been killed in the past two years. A banner carrying pictures of 19 “martyred” whistleblowers formed part of the backdrop for Team Anna's dais.
Among families present at the protest was those of Right To Information activist Shashidhar Mishra of Begusarai in Bihar. Mishra, who earned a living as a street vendor, was shot dead near his house by unidentified men in February 2010 for exposing corruption at the panchayat and block levels. His wife Anita Devi came to support Team Anna with her four children, aged between 11 and three years.
“He protested against the wrongdoings of the people in power. His body was taken for post-mortem by the police overnight. They later told us there was no merit to the case and that they would not pursue it further.”
Ms. Devi said her husband was the only earning member of the family and she faces trouble making ends meet after his death. She said she supported Mr. Hazare's movement and wanted “a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry and proper investigation” into her husband's death.
Jasuben Vishram Dodiya, wife of RTI activist Vishram Laxman Dodiya who was killed in February 2011 in Surat for seeking information about illegal power connections in the city, was also present.
“Officials of the power company tried to keep him away, even offered money, but he was unmoved. He eventually paid for it with his life,” she said.
The family, she said, has had no power for the last six years: “The power company cut off the connection after he began filing RTIs and has threatened our neighbours against helping us out. My son is an auto rickshaw driver and I stitch clothes for a living,” she added.
She expressed solidarity with Mr. Hazare's cause and said an effective Jan Lokpal Bill would ensure better protection for whistleblowers' families. “I lost my husband, but I don't want others to suffer similar fate,” she said.
Fighting to ensure justice for E. Sathish Kumar, who was crushed to death by a lorry near Tirunelveli district in Tamil Nadu on March 11 for raising a voice against the sand mafia in the district, his brother was present at the protest.
“Even though the police arrived within half-an-hour of the incident, they were largely non-cooperative. We have not received a copy of the post mortem report till now. We support the movement and hope the Jan Lokpal Bill will bring culprits to the book,” he said.
Team Anna said these killings have highlighted the need for a strong whistleblowers' protection mechanism under control of Jan Lokpal and Jan Lokayukta so that these people who work incessantly to expose corruption within the system can be adequately protected.
Family members of Sola Ranga Rao, who filed a petition about the funding of the village drainage system in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, and Mahendra Kutmar Sharma, who lost his life trying to expose the corruption in the National Rural Health Mission scam at Lakhimpur Kheri in Uttar Pradesh, were also present.
