‘Bribery, cash for votes a threat to statute’

Bribery and the menace of cash for votes were the threats to the Constitution, said Justice P.N. Prakash of the Madras High Court here on Thursday.

Addressing a virtual conference organised by the National Service Scheme (NSS) unit of University of Madras to mark the Constitution Day, he quoted B.R. Ambedkar who said that however good a Constitution may be, it will prove to be bad if those implementing it were not good.

Highlighting that around 50% of the elected representatives in the Lok Sabha had criminal cases against them, he said those spending huge money to bribe voters to get elected could not be expected to do good for the people.

Stressing the need for “eternal vigilance” to safeguard the Constitution and its values, he said he had pinned his hopes on the common man. “A day will come when awakened people will refuse to take bribe,” he said.

Arguing that Constitution had survived not because of the institutions but because of the common people, Justice Prakash said that when the Constitution was subverted in 1974, people changed the government.

S. Gowri, Vice-Chancellor, University of Madras, spoke on the humongous efforts that went behind the creation of the Constitution. He highlighted the need for NSS to further widen its efforts to help the underprivileged.

“It need not be about giving food for a day. We should see if some interventions can be made to help them lead a happy life,” he said.