LOBBYING

                                                                         

      Lobbying   is a form of advocacy with the intention of influencing decisions made by the government by individuals or more usually by lobby groups ,it includes all attempts to influence legislators and officials whether  by other legislators , constituents or organized groups. However there is a difference between advocacy and lobbying. Lobbying  is any attempt to influence specific legislation whereas advocacy involves identifying, embracing and promoting a cause. There is no limit to the amount of advocacy you can do. Advocacy is not lobbying. Hence there is a limitation in lobbying.

     In US there is the existence of lobbying in the Congress ,state levels ,municipal level and the city council through which legislation is influenced. The ability of individuals, groups, and corporations to lobby the government is protected by the “right to petition under the “First Amendment to the United States Constitution.” Right to petition is a right which prohibits Congress from abridging “the right of the people…to..petition the government for a redress of grievances. However lobbying in US too comes with regulations such as “The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 “and “ Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 “which has increased regulation and transparency in the system of lobbying.                  

   In United Kingdom industrial lobbying has recently  grown with the name of “Public Affairs” where the  many  MPs and in particular Ministers are recruited by lobby firms and lobbyists have been recruited by ministers as 'special advisors.' Some there believed  that giving lobbying a statutory registry would bring about transparency while the government believed that lobbying would be the next big scandal and taint the politics. Apart form these there is lobbying in Brussels which started in the 1970’s and in European Union too.

      In these countries and in Union there is some sort of a rule or a law which gives lobbying a status ,but this is not the case in India. There is neither a law which legalises lobbying neither a law which repeals it. However  lobbying has been in practice in India for a long time now, within the chambers of commerce,lawyers, chartered accountants,retired bureaucrats,communications ,aviation and many more. It is being carried out in the disguise of public relations. Lobbyists use the title of Public relations for striking the best deals for the clients they have. In the pursuit of minting money the lobbyist go to any extent to influence various legislations to safeguard their clients interest. There has been various instances in the past which reveals this phenomenon. The very bubbling example is that of the Nira Radia tape controversy. She too owns a public relations firm and she too is being branded as lobbyist so one can clearly understand that these two terms are the two sides of the same coin.

    Lobbying in India has acquired new  dignities and sophistication but the entire business can be described as a thinly disguised corruption.Lobbying in a healthy manner is always good but now as our economy has become purely market driven its being misused. These days its an easier form of money minting .Moreover with global business looking to invest in India this phenomenon has further increased as the foreign firms find it easier to go through the lobbyists to start . Lobbyist or the Public relations personnels are individuals with tremendous  contacts ranging form politicians,bureaucrats ,legislators,media  etc . Hence lobbying has always been in practice in India under  public relations, as a way of advertising for clients and ultimately influencing policies and decisions. This is the reason why these professions are the largest paying profession  now. It has become such chronic now that it has seeped into all the fields in the pursuit of making money.

   Thus lobbying does not have a legal sanctity in India hence it is being misused largely.The government should take adequate measures to  legalise it fully or make it an offence which is punishable. As many believe that  the practice of lobbying in order to influence political decisions is a legitimate and necessary part of the democratic process. However this too will be effective if these are backed with well stimulated limitations so that the rights of the government are not  jeopardised in the name of lobbying. Its  time for the government  to give a thought and take appropriate  steps.