Crime blighted Ministry

The BJP government that assumed office after a stupendous victory in the national elections last year, pledged to revive the economy, boost investment sentiment, generate jobs and most importantly, end corruption.

But no promises have been fulfilled so far and the blight of corruption continues to expand its clutches over almost the whole of bureaucracy. The latest government report released plainly indicates the current plight of the country. Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), a government body that was formed to address governmental corruption, received around 63, 288 corruption complaints last year ranging from bribe accusations to serious graft allegations as against the 35, 332 complaints in 2013. The record number of complaints related to allegations of corruption in various central government Ministries and departments received by the anti-corruption watchdog in 2014 indicates a rise of 79 percent over the previous year. The complaints were filed by whistleblowers as well as anonymous complainants who are aware of where and how to carry out the procedures. The cases are mostly related to departments like Railway, banks Urban Development Department and Income Tax Department. Of the 63, 000 complaints received, only 5743 of them have been resolved granting punishment to the accused including imprisonment. The remaining cases are still pending.

Central Vigilance Commissioner Pradeep Kumar and Vigilance Commissioner J M Garg completed their term on September 28 and September 7, last year, respectively. But the fact that no new person has been appointed at the post shows the negligence of the government towards curbing corruption. The CVC is headed by a Central Vigilance Commissioner and has two Vigilance Commissioners. While the sanctioned strength of the employees working in the Commission is 296, there are only 230 employees at present, according to the latest annual report. In the World International Forum held in Davos, Switzerland, in January, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley conducted discussions with the Indian business tycoons about the future of India under “Modi’s vision” and listed out steps to curb corruption such as the Lokpal Bill, Citizens Charter Bill, Right to Service Act and self attested affidavit. But no significant moves have been adopted by the government till now and the corruption rate has increased with majority of the Ministers in its grip. It is also used as an important weapon to tackle the political opponents. The CVC at present has no responsible head and any voice against the delinquency is effectively suppressed.