Delivering a talk on ``The citizens' right to good governance'' organised by the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies (IALS) at the ILS Law College, Bhatia said that the executive and the legislature were working hand-in-hand in Indian democracy.

They work together in such a manner that legislature does not really check the executive. This gives rise to corruption and malfunctioning of the administration, Bhatia said.

Making a fervent appeal to make the judiciary strong, the former Pune municipal commissioner lamented that ``we are having a democracy without an independent judiciary and a system which does not permit one to exercise the right to know.''

In the same breath, he asserted that only the institution of judiciary could save the citizens in Indian democracy. ``The judiciary should be made absolutely free from all sorts of executive interference and influence such as transfer of judges.''

Speaking on the right to know, Bhatia said, ``What kind of a democracy we are living in which people do not have access to the data that governs them.''

``The Constitution of India gives everyone the freedom of expression. But if the data is kept away then how does one exercise this right effectively?'' argued Bhatia.

Talking about the administration in government machinery, Bhatia said the bureaucrat, contractor and the politician were exploiting the system to their gains. ``One cannot expect either of them to change the existing feudal system as it is convenient for them,'' he said.

Hence, the common people who are bearing the brunt of this system should come forward to fight against it, he remarked. In the same context, he referred to cases of corruption unearthed by him during his one-and-half month's term at the Pune Municipal Corporation and also during his tenure as the Divisional Commissioner of Pune.

Stating that in many cases the enquiries were still on, Bhatia urged the advocates, students of law and individuals to take up such cases in the court of law through public interest litigations.

``Punishment to the corrupt is not the only solution, the action in cases of corruption should be strong enough to serve as a deterrent,'' he added.

Giving a vote of thanks S P Sathe, director IALS, however, cautioned that judiciary cannot be a panacea for all the problems. Other components of the system have to be activated for dealing with the existing problems, he added. He also lamented that the corrupt have seldom been punished in the country.