Surajya, still a distant dream: Freedom fighter

Veteran freedom fighter Pandit Sudhakar Chaturvedi lamented that corruption had been infused into every walk of life and wondered whether their fight for freedom had been valued at all.
“I sometimes wonder if this is why we fought for independence and freedom,” Chaturvedi said.

Chaturvedi, who celebrated his 113th birthday on Monday, strongly felt that greed and selfishness need to be overcome to root out corruption from the society.

‘Eradicate corruption’

He urged the Lokayukta and similar agencies across the country to work more rigorously to eradicate corruption. He said: “Although we have attained swarajya, surajya (good governance) is still a distant dream... We still need to learn how to act and where to act.” However, this can only be achieved if self-aggrandisement gave way to self-satisfaction and spirit of sacrifice.

“...Only then can a corruption-free society be established,” Chaturvedi said.
An associate of Mahatma Gandhi, Chaturvedi, who participated in Jallianwala Bagh protests and was jailed several times during the freedom struggle, said: “Simple, truthful life is the secret of longevity.”

Chaturvedi was gifted a special wheel chair by Lokayukta Santosh Hegde on behalf of IDL Foundation, an NGO working for visually challenged and senior citizens.