CORRUPTION

CORRUPTION

Corruption is deliberate and intentional exploitation of one’s position, status or resources, directly or indirectly; for personal aggrandizement.

Recent Instances of Corruption:

• Maharashtra former home minister: Allegations of corruption made by former Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh against Deshmukh in a letter addressed to the Chief Minister of Maharashtra.
• Odisha IFoS officer case: Senior Indian Forest Service officer Abhay Kant Pathak, from Odisha Cadre was compulsorily retired recently on charges of amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income.
• During Pandemic: Reports of corruption and nepotism in the allotment of hospital beds and black marketing of medicines and oxygen cylinders during the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic. Example – 200-bed Dedicated Covid Hospital (DCH) at auto-cluster, Chinchwad.
• 2021 Recruitment scam: On a complaint, alleging involvement of serving army personnel in accepting bribes for clearance of review medical exam of temporarily rejected officer candidates at the Base Hospital in New Delhi, Central Bureau of Investigation registered the FIR.

Causes of Corruption:

1. Political causes:

• Use of black money in elections: Increase in declared expenditure by more than 400% for the LS elections with 69% of income of political parties coming from unknown sources.
• Criminalization of politics: In 2019 as many as 43% of MPs had criminal cases pending against them.
• Crony capitalism: The economic reforms of 1991 have led to the growth of unholy nexus between politicians and businessmen.

2. Economic causes:

• High share of informal sector: This leads to bribery of the officials to keep out of the ambit of laws where compliance is costly and complex.
• Low wages: Low salaries in public sector, poor career growth opportunities, and harsher working conditions.
• Regulatory cholesterol: Bribes to grease the wheels of bureaucracy.

3. Legal and Administrative causes:

• Politicization of bureaucracy: For example – Punishment postings, transfers etc., such as Ashok Khemka.
• Colonial bureaucracy: Old archaic laws and unchallenged authority of public servants, complex rules, secrecy, moral responsibility devoid of legal accountability, and the ivory tower attitude.
• Lack of oversight and vigilance: Lack of accountability and politicization of investigative agencies.
• Judicial failure: Poor conviction rates, delay in disposal of cases, etc.
• Failed reforms: Lack of political will and resistance from within the bureaucracy has led to failure of major reforms like citizen charter, RTI, and e-governance.
• Over Centralisation: Lack of proper delegation leads to a large number of intermediaries between the service provider (state) and the service recipient (citizen), leading to diffusion of accountability.
• Weak Enforcement of Law: Poor conviction under the Prevention of Corruption Act, RPA etc. Example – CBI has hundreds of cases pending in various courts under the PCA, some of them as old as 25 years.
• Bureaucratic Red-Tapism

4. Social and Ethical causes:

• Changes in societal values: Materialistic society, “Chalta Hai attitude”, etc.
• Failure of education system: To inculcate the value of empathy, compassion, integrity, equity, etc., in the young generation.
• Power asymmetry: Informal jobs, highly unequal society [India’s richest 1% hold more than four-times the wealth held by the bottom 70%].
• Power and information asymmetry: It leads to over-dependence on the state, resisting citizens’ capacity to demand from the State.

Impact of Corruption

1. Economic impact

• Impact on Global GDP: Cost of bribery alone is between $1.5 to $2 trillion per year. This represents a total economic loss of approximately 2% of global GDP [IMF 2016].
• Compromises with economic growth: By raising the cost of Doing Business.
• Decreases employment: By promoting nepotism, denial to minorities, and vulnerable sections.
• Poor infrastructure: Investment in physical capital is reduced, and use of inferior quality raw materials in construction leads to poor infrastructure. This in turn leads to various collapses of bridges, buildings, etc.
• Quality of services: The quality of goods and services decreases, and the process of obtaining them becomes more expensive, time-consuming, and unfair.
• Shadow economy: Small businesses tend to avoid taxation, resulting in income generated by many businesses outside the official economy, reducing the country’s GDP.
• Detrimental to competition: When jobs/contracts are given to people/companies who offer bribes or share a personal connection, this occurs to the detriment of competition.
• Under-development: International economic and humanitarian initiatives are derailed as funds disbursed from loans and aid are embezzled or handed out to corrupt contractors.
• Foreign investment: Investors who seek a fair, competitive business environment will avoid investing in countries where there is a high level of corruption.

2. Political Impact

• Taints democratic values: Corruption undermines democracy, governance, and human rights by weakening state institutions.
• Decreases accountability: Increasing authoritarianism is partly fueled by corruption [Transparency International]. Corruption increases inequality, decreases popular accountability, and political responsiveness.
• Diminished State capacity: It compromises the ethos of public service and changes political culture so as to render meaningful, public-spirited reforms virtually unthinkable.
• Diminishes Political Participation: When political non-accountability increases, such perceptions persist for protracted periods and political participation diminishes.

3. Social Impact

• Widens inequality: Unequal opportunity which leads to perpetuation of poverty.
• Social infrastructure: Funding for education, health care, poverty relief, etc., can become a source of personal enrichment for party officials, bureaucrats, and contractors.
• Denial of justice: When corruption pervades the justice system, the powerful may escape justice while others may be unfairly accused of crimes, deprived of due process, and wrongly imprisoned.
• Increasing polarization: When corruption, in particular state capture, becomes the norm, it can polarize citizens: those in support of corrupt regimes (because of kickbacks and handouts) versus those opposed to them.
• Decrease in Public Trust: People lose trust in leaders, social systems, and sometimes even in society when corruption is widespread and corrupt actors are not being held accountable.

4. Environment impact

• Damage to ecosystems: Illegal mining in national parks (e.g., Gir National Park).

5. Other impacts

• Sustainable Development Goals: Especially, SDG 16, which is titled “Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions”.
• Impact on others: Violations that are ignored could be interpreted as being acceptable, promoting such behavior.

Measures taken to tackle corruption:

1. Legislative measures:

• Indian Penal Code 1860:
  • Section 169: Pertains to a public servant unlawfully buying or bidding for property. If the property is purchased, it shall be confiscated.
  • Section 409: Pertains to criminal breach of trust by a public servant.
• Prevention of Corruption Act 1988: Seeks to create a balance between the need to bring the corrupt to the books and protect honest officers. Its aim is to prohibit public servants from accepting or soliciting illegal gratification in the discharge of their official functions.
• Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002: An offense of money laundering has been committed if a person is a party to any process connected with the proceeds of crime and projects such proceeds as untainted property.
• Right to Information Act 2005: Makes disclosure of information a legal right of the public to promote transparency. Example – Vyapam scam of MP.
• Lokpal and Lokayukta Act 2013: Appoints an independent authority, Lokpal at the center and Lokayukta at states, to probe into the complaints of wrongdoing by public servants.

• Whistle-blower Protection Act 2014: Provides a mechanism to investigate alleged corruption and misuse of power by public servants and also protect anyone who exposes alleged wrongdoing in government bodies, projects, and offices.
• Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988: Prohibits any benami transaction except when a person purchases property in his wife’s or unmarried daughter’s name.

2. Institutions

• Central Bureau of Investigation and State Anti-corruption Bureau: Investigates cases related to corruption under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, and the IPC 1860. The CBI’s jurisdiction is the central government and Union Territories while the state ACBs investigate cases within the states.
• Enforcement Directorate: A law enforcement agency responsible for enforcing economic laws and fighting economic crime in India. It is part of the Ministry of Finance.
• Central Vigilance Commission (CVC): A statutory body that supervises corruption cases in government departments. The CVC can refer cases either to the Central Vigilance Officer (CVO) in each department or to the CBI.

3. Administrative reforms:

• E-governance initiatives: Reduce the manual interface between state and citizen, thus preventing incidences of bribery. Examples include e-auctions, Faceless Assessment Scheme, Direct Benefit Transfer, computerization of Railway Passenger Bookings, e-Choupal, etc.
• Citizen Charters and Public Service delivery and Grievance Redress Acts in states: Many states like Karnataka (SAKALA initiative) and Rajasthan have enacted such acts to make the bureaucracy legally accountable for delivering quality service within stipulated time periods.
• Compulsory retirement: Compulsorily retiring and weeding out corrupt officials. Recent removal of certain IRS officers.

4. International Measures:

• UN Convention against Corruption: A comprehensive convention that provides for domestic rules and treatment of transactions with foreign officials as well. It provides for the treatment of transactions of public sector, private sector, preventive action, attachment, etc.
• OECD Guidelines for Multinationals, 2011: Provides guidelines for enterprises to combat bribery and stresses preventive measures.
• United Nations Declaration against Corruption and Bribery: Adopted by the General Assembly in December 1996, this declaration is an important milestone in international commercial transactions. It deals with both public and private sectors.
• International Code of Conduct for public officials: Guides member-states in their efforts against corruption through a set of guiding principles that public servants should follow in the performance of their duties in relation to loyalty, integrity, efficiency, effectiveness, fairness, impartiality, etc.

Way forward 

1. Offences [II ARC]: The following should be classified as offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act:

• Gross perversion of the Constitution and democratic institutions amounting to willful violation of oath of office.
• Abuse of authority unduly favoring or harming someone.
• Obstruction of justice.
• Squandering public money.

2. Sanction for prosecution [II ARC]

• Prior sanction: It should not be necessary for prosecuting a public servant who has been trapped red-handed or in cases of possessing assets disproportionate to the known sources of income.
• Documents can be produced before courts: PCA should be amended to ensure that sanctioning authorities are not summoned and instead the documents can be produced before the courts by the appropriate authority.
• Sanctioning authority: The Presiding Officer of a House of Legislature should be designated as the sanctioning authority for MPs and MLAs respectively.

3. Liability of corrupt practices [II ARC]: Public servants who cause loss to the state or citizens by their corrupt acts should be made liable to make good the loss caused and, in addition, be liable for damages.
4. Speeding of trials under Prevention Corruption Act [II ARC]:

• Time limit: A legal provision needs to be introduced in CrPC fixing a time limit for various stages of trial.
• Court proceedings: Proceedings of courts trying cases under the Prevention of Corruption Act should be held on a day-to-day basis, without any deviation.
• Guidelines: The Supreme Court and the High Courts may lay down guidelines to preclude unwarranted adjournments and avoidable delays.

5. Corruption involving private sector [II ARC]:

• Private sector providers: Amendment to The Prevention of Corruption Act to include in its purview private sector providers of public utility services.
• NGOs under Prevention of Corruption Act: NGOs that receive substantial funding should be covered [any institution or body that has received more than 50% of its annual operating costs, or a sum equal to or greater than Rs 1 crore during any of the preceding 3 years] under PCA.

6. Confiscation of properties illegally acquired by corrupt means [II ARC]: The Corrupt Public Servants (forfeiture of property) Bill, as suggested by the law commission, should be enacted without further delay.
7. Protection to Whistle-blowers [II ARC]: Legislation should be enacted immediately to provide protection to whistle-blowers on the following lines proposed by the Law Commission:

• Protection to whistle-blowers: Those exposing false claims, fraud, or corruption should be protected by ensuring confidentiality and anonymity, protection from victimization in career, and other administrative measures to prevent bodily harm and harassment.
• Corporate whistle-blowers: The legislation should cover corporate whistle-blowers unearthing fraud or serious damage to public interest by willful acts of omission or commission.

8. Immunity enjoyed by legislators [II ARC]:

• Parliamentary Privileges: Amendments to Article 105(2) [and 194(2)] of the Constitution to provide that the immunity enjoyed by MPs does not cover corrupt acts committed by them in connection with their duties in the House or otherwise. [NCRWC and II ARC].

9. Constitutional Protection of Civil Servants should be removed [II ARC]: Article 310 and 311 of the Constitution should be repealed.
10. The Lokpal and Lokayukta [II ARC]:

• Rashtriya Lokayukta: Amendment to the Constitution to provide for a national Ombudsman to be called the Rashtriya Lokayukta, defining his/her role and jurisdiction.

• Lokayukta: The Constitution should be amended to incorporate a provision making it obligatory on the part of State Governments to establish the institution of Lokayukta and stipulate the general principles about its structure, power, and functions.

11. Strengthening investigation and prosecution [II ARC]

• Supervision: The State Vigilance Commission’s/Lokayuktas may be empowered to supervise the prosecution of corruption-related cases.
• Skilling:
  • The investigative agencies should acquire multi-disciplinary skills.
  • Modern techniques of investigation should also be deployed, such as electronic surveillance, video and audio recording of surprise inspections, traps, searches, and seizures.
• Time limit: A reasonable time limit for investigation of different types of cases should be fixed for the investigative agencies.
• Focus: The priorities need to be reoriented by focusing on ‘big’ cases of corruption.

12. Role of Media [II ARC]

• Electronic media: Should evolve a Code of Conduct and a self-regulating mechanism to adhere to a Code of Conduct as a safeguard against mala fide action.
• Government efforts: Government agencies can help the media in the fight against corruption by disclosing details about corruption cases regularly.

13. Social audit [II ARC]: Operational guidelines of all developmental schemes and citizen-centric programmes should provide for a social audit mechanism.
14. Reduce monopoly of functions [II ARC]: Each Ministry/Department [both Centre and State level] may undertake an immediate exercise to identify areas where the existing ‘monopoly of functions’ can be tempered with competition.
15. Simplifying transactions [II ARC]:

• Simplification of methods: Based on principles such as the adoption of a ‘single window’ approach, minimizing hierarchical tiers, stipulating time limits for disposal, etc.
• Review of manuals and codes: The existing Departmental Manuals and Codes should be thoroughly reviewed and simplified to periodically update such documents and make them available as soft-copies online and hard copies for sale.
• Rewards: A system of rewards and incentives for the simplification and streamlining of procedures may be introduced in each government organization.
• Positive silence: Wherever permissions/licenses, etc., are to be issued, there should be a time limit for processing after which permission, if not already given, should be deemed to have been granted.

16. Use of Information and Communication Technology [II ARC]: Each Ministry/Department/Organization of government should draw up a plan for the use of IT to improve governance.
17. Promoting transparency: By encouraging mechanisms of ‘integrity pacts’.
18. Elimination of discretion [II ARC]:

• Regulations: Where it is not possible to do so, well-defined regulations should attempt to ‘bound’ discretion.
• Decision-making: Important matters should be assigned to a committee rather than individuals except when prompt decisions are required.

19. Monitoring complaints [II ARC]:

• Online complaint tracking system: All offices having a large public interface should have an online complaint tracking system.
• Audit: There should be an external, periodic mechanism of ‘audit’ of complaints in offices having a large public interface.
• Remedial measures: Complaints should be enquired into and responsibilities be fixed. They should also be used to analyse the systemic deficiencies so that remedial measures are taken.

20. Best Practices

• Hong Kong: The Independent Commission against Corruption (ICAC) of Hong Kong has produced exemplary results by strengthening the ability of civil society to question corruption. It was successful due to vigorous public education campaigns which brought changes in public attitude to corruption.
• Silchar, Assam: “Debona nebona” (Won’t give, won’t take) – An Anti-Corruption Movement along with Mobile Phone Application by the District Administration Cachar, Silchar.

Features of Corruption in India

• Premium: Corruption in India often leads to promotion, not prison. It is often the honest who pay the price, not the corrupt, often known as “premium on dishonesty”.
• Two-way road: In India, if government officers demand bribes, people think ‘chalta hai’ so long as they do the work, it is rarely protested against. Thus, corruption is not just one way, but two ways. People are also eager to give bribes to get things done.
• Collusive nexus: There is a collusive nexus among politicians, lobbyists, and businesses.
  • For example — Radia tape exposes the same.
• Regional variation: Corruption is more or less everywhere in India but is usually higher in less developed regions.
• Up-stream: Corruption in India occurs upstream, not downstream; that is, it flows from the top-level.
• Wings: Corrupt gains made in other parts of the world are invested back in the country in some form, often in big-ticket projects. However, in India, black money is immediately smuggled out to safe havens abroad, adding in no way to the development of the country.
• Impact of development and decentralization: Level of development—measured both in economic and education terms—and the level of fiscal decentralization are significant and negatively related with levels of corruption.

Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2018 

Other issues in the Amendment Act

• Missing key provisions of UNCAC: Such as preventive anti-corruption policies and practices, and the right of an aggrieved party to seek compensation/damages for loss due to corrupt practices.
• Burden of Proof: It lies on the accused only for taking bribes.
• Deters briber-giver appearing as witness: No provision to protect the witness from prosecution for any statement made by them during the trial.