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Journalism of Courage
A peon-cum-storekeeper in Ujjain was found to have own properties and valuables worth between Rs 10 and Rs 12 crore. So was a sub-engineer in Mandsaur. And the assets of an RTO clerk in Indore,which included a palatial farmhouse on a 49-bigha plot not far from the town,are estimated to be worth around Rs 40 crore.
Recent raids on the premises of peons,sub-engineers and clerks in Madhya Pradesh have led to seizures,or at least the unearthing,of wealth that would have been unimaginable for such lower-rung employees without decision-making powers unless,officials say,they amassed it with the knowledge,if not the active collusion,of their seniors.
The raids were conducted by the Lokayukta and the Economic Offences Wing. Activists have accused both of targeting lower-rung employees and sparing those higher up but say the wealth unearthed is still a revelation.
More often than not,employees like these collect money on behalf of their seniors who themselves are part of a chain but get sacrificed when raids are conducted, says a retired government officer,calling the trend a decentralisation of corruption.
From luxury cars,air-conditioners,LCDs,computers and expensive furniture,the living standard of employees has left raiding teams dumbstruck.
Diaries with details of beneficiaries are found during such raids but the big fish are always let off because the trail of corruption is never followed, says Transparency International member Ajay Dubey,accusing the Lokayukta and Economic Offences Bureau of targeting only junior employees. The government recently removed both these entities from the purview of the RTI Act on the ground that giving information at crucial stages hampers investigations.
Attempts like making employees posting details of their assets online have not proved effective. Each one of the raided employees,including bureaucrats,has been found to have given false information. The health department has seen a series of scams involving directors like Yogiraj Sharma and Ashok Sharma. But they were among few seniors who faced action.
Its a failure of governance, retired government officer Raghuraj Singh says of the recent raids. If Class III or IV employees can make so much,he asks,how much more can bureaucrats make.
While government employees do dread the arrival of Lokayukta teams,the rate of conviction is so low in MP that in the long run it does not serve as deterrent.
Forget IAS and IPS officers,Dubey says,the Lokayukta does not even target deputy collectors in MP. The Economic Offences Wing,PCC chief Kantilal Bhuria alleges,too is being selective. The recent raids only confirm that the low-rung employees were dealing in crores because they enjoyed the patronage of people like chairmen of boards and corporations,their deputies as also ministers,he alleges.
It took the Income Tax department to conduct high-profile raids on IAS couple Arvind and Tinoo Joshis premises in Bhopal in 2010. Under suspension since the raids,the couple had property estimated at close to Rs 350 crore. A government officer says Joshi was not an exception but other bureaucrats escaped attention because they appeared to have covered their bases well or were in league with ministers.
Former DGP A R Puar said the raiding teams hesitate to target senior bureaucrats because its difficult to get concrete evidence against them. The trail of investments is so complex that it becomes difficult to establish ownership, says Puar.
On the low rate of conviction and poor prosecution,Puar says institutions dealing with corruption are burdened with a backlog because old cases go on the backburner when new raids are conducted. When officials concerned are transferred,prosecution suffers.
Asked about corruption in MP,Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan blames the Centre for not clearing an anti-corruption legislation that would enable setting up of special courts. Dubey says cases in the existing courts often fall through due to poor prosecution efforts.
Forced by the string of raids,the government has announced that it is reviewing cases recommended by the Lokayukta for prosecuting government employees. The government recently sanctioned prosecution in 18 out of 67 cases.
From general administration department to forest and from school education to cooperation there is no government department against whose employees prosecution requests have not been made.
