Mysuru: Former Karnataka Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde has stressed on the need for parents and teachers to impart values among children instead of developing greed for wealth.

He was speaking after inaugurating the 9th Sarvashri Atalji National Award and 9th Sarvashri Rama Rao Gundurao State Award  ceremony programme organised under the joint aegis of Sandhya Suraksha Trust, Atalji Samskara Bharat Pratishtana, Zilla Brahmana Mahasabha and Shakambari Dharmika Shraddha Kendra at Ganabharathi on Adichunchanagiri Road in Kuvempunagar here yesterday.

Bemoaning that the trend for developing greed for wealth and richness was on the rise these days, Justice Hegde said that there was a time when parents used to ask their wards to become Doctors or Engineers. But now, the times have changed completely, with parents telling their wards to just become rich and wealthy, no matter how and by what means, which is a matter of concern.

“There seems to be no remedy for greed. It is important that we teach our children to lead a contentful life. It is distressing to note that people who have gone to jail for illegal acquisition of wealth, often cite Mahatma Gandhiji’s stay in jail. But everyone should understand that the Mahatma went to jail only for the cause of independence and not for any illegal activities”, he lamented.

Expressing disappointment that those in Government say that the Maharshi Valmiki Development Corporation scam is just Rs. 84 crore and not Rs. 184 crore as reported, Justice Hegde said that in any case, a thief is a thief, whether he steals an elephant or betel nuts.

“There is no remedy for greed and the corrupt are going scot-free taking advantage of loopholes in the Law. It is disappointing to note that a corruption case drags on for decades in Courts, while the punishment, that too proved guilty, is just about a couple of years. Compare this with that of China, where the corrupt are sentenced to death after a quick legal process. But the situation in our country is totally different where corruption cases drag on for decades, with hardly a very few convictions”, the former Lokayukta said adding that parents and teachers play a vital role in imparting moral and valued education to children.

Senior Journalist Ravi Hegde in his address, drew parallels between Justice Santosh Hedge and former Prime Minister late A.B. Vajpayee. Pointing out that most people came to know about the existence of Lokayukta only when the then Lokayukta Venkatachalaiah started raiding corrupt officials, he said that Justice Santosh Hegde took a different stand saying that the Lokayukta must function as a Judge. “Justice Hegde worked silently and meticulously to unearth the massive Ballari mining scam involving thousands of crores of rupees, which ultimately led many to demit their office or posts,” he said adding that both Hegde.