'Delay in prosecution key to low conviction in Maharashtra'

MUMBAI: Data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) shows Maharashtra topping the country in corruption cases even as the conviction rate remains pathetic. “NCRB figures should be treated as a wake-up call for citizens,” said retired IPS officer Meeran Borwankar.

“That the conviction rate has fallen to 15% in Maharashtra is a rude shock; it used to be higher in the 90s.That the post of Anti-Corruption Bureau chief is kept vacant, officers of choice and not of merit are posted, cases registered and closed at the direction of politicians have all affected ACB Maharashtra.”
Going by the data, complainants are not being discouraged from reporting corruption cases in Maharashtra. Over 930 cases were registered in 2018 in Maharashtra, while Uttar Pradesh registered just 84 cases. But while trials were completed in 374 cases in Maharashtra, there were only 56 convictions in 2018. Madhya Pradesh, which completed trials in 310 cases, handed out convictions in 224 in the same period—a conviction rate of 72.3%.
Delay in prosecution is a key factor that hampers conviction. “When a graft complaint is received, ACB does a verification and lays a trap. But for prosecution, a sanction would be required from a competent authority under Prevention of Corruption Act. If this sanction is not taken, the judicial officer will not take cognisance of the case and discharge it,” said former DGP Pravin Dixit, who had earlier served as ACB chief. “Who would be the competent authority for the sanction depends upon the class of the officer trapped. If it’s a class I officer, sanction is required from the government, which either takes a long time or may even be rejected.” Maharashtra had the highest number of graft-trap cases—891—in 2018.
Departmental inquiries seem to have lost gravity, he added. “An inquiry may not begin or conclude on time. Even if it does conclude, there will be several appeals made against the order passed by the initial officer,” Dixit said. “Perhaps the only dampener for a corrupt public servant is his naming and shaming in the media following arrest. It would bring down his morale from indulging in corruption.” According to the NCRB data, Rajasthan has fared the worst in departmental inquiries with not a single corrupt public servant being dismissed or awarded punishment.
“Most corruption cases relate to petty traps of junior officers, who often get acquitted in the final stage. In instances where seniors are involved, a corruption case is usually not registered and if registered, it is closed based on untenable pretexts,” said lawyer Y P Singh, also a former IPS officer. “With the substantial dilution of the Prevention of Corruption Act and the control that the government holds on the ACB, it is clear that nobody is serious about tackling corruption and the public is completely ignorant of these developments.”