Slamming the demand for a Jan Lokpal Bill to battle corruption, Karnataka Governor H R Bhardwaj on Friday said corruption can be checked only through a strong democracy and not through an "extra-constitutional body" like Jan Lokpal.
"The system can be perfected only through constitutional amendments, not through an ombudsman like the Jan Lokpal," Bhardwaj said while addressing a three-day international conference on 'Power of Media in a Globalising World' organised by Institute of Objective Studies in Bengaluru.
Bhardwaj said he was upset with the civil society for "slighting" the supremacy of Parliament.
Launching an indirect tirade against Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled state government, he said the Muslim youth in Karnataka were the most depressed lot compared to youth in other states of the country.
The Congress party has always kept communal forces at bay and they should not be encouarged, Bhardwaj said.
"We are followers of Gandhiji, not Godse (who killed Gandhiji). We will protect the interests of minorities in India," he said.
Earlier, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman K Rahman Khan said democracy in India was under threat because media was being controlled by business houses, which imposed their perceptions instead of reporting facts or the truth.
He urged the media to be authentic and become responsible in reporting facts instead of imposing their views on them.
"Media has the same responsibility as other three pillars (Legislature, Executive and Judiciary) of democracy," Rahma said.
