Need for a strong legal tool to combat graft: Kiran Bedi

New Delhi, May 2 (ANI): Reacting to former President Dr. A.P.J Abdul Kalam's statement that the Lokpal Bill will only fill jails, former Indian Police Service (IPS) officer and social activist Kiran Bedi on Wednesday said there is a need for a strong legal tool to combat graft.

"What is missing in India today, is a strong legal tool of which people are very afraid and there's a high surety of punishment and their speedy justice and there is a recovery of stolen money. That is what is missing today," Bedi told media here.

"Remember what Dr. Kalam is saying is right. He is talking about generation next. You do need a generation next of better school children with value based education. But what you do with an epidemic of corruption, which is existing. So, what you do with those who are not children, but who are men and women who have committed corruption and who living on corruption money and who are showing the richness. And it's corruption stolen from common man's money. So, I think what we are talking about is a top-down and bottom-up approach," added Bedi.

Bedi further pressed for having special courts so that the perpetrators could be booked.

"We know that they (lawmakers) are accused but our demand is that why do we not have speedy trials so that they should also become aware and public should also know that whether they are convict or not. They are accused but court will only decide whether they are convicts or not. Why do we not have speedy trials and why do we not have special courts for them," she said.

Dr. Kalam has said that the creation of a Lokpal or national ombudsman will not help curb corruption.

"What Lokpal will do is if it finds anyone guilty it would put them in jail, and jails will be filled up. What we want is nobody should go to jail ... as we want good human beings," Dr Kalam said in Ranchi on Tuesday.

"How to eliminate corruption, how to eliminate? Some law is there to eliminate the corruption. Lokpal Bill will come, it will eliminate the corruption put the people in a jail, jail gets filled up but we want good human beings,' he said.

"You children each one of you today, you take a vow - My family, nobody will be corrupt. Even if my mother or father is corrupt, I will tell my father don't do that. How many of you have got that courage? How many of you? If you do that then corruption can be eliminated in no time. The youth can do that," he added. (ANI)