INTEGRITY IN ADMINISTRATION & ROLE OF CORRUPTION IN INDIAN POLITICS

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TRANS Asian Research Journals

http://www.tarj.in 53

P u b l i s h e d b y : T R A N S A s i a n R e s e a r c h J o u r n a l s

AJMR:

A s i a n J o u r n a l o f

M u l t i d i m e n s i o n a l

R e s e a r c h

( A D o u b l e B l i n d R e f e r r e d & R e v i e we d I n t e r n a t i o n a l J o u r n a l )

INTEGRITY IN ADMINISTRATION & ROLE OF CORRUPTION IN

INDIAN POLITICS

Dr. Jitendra Sahoo*

*Assistant Professor, Dewan Abdul Gani College,

West Bengal.

ABSTRACT

The dictionary defined integrity as soundness of moral principles, the character of uncorrupted virtues; uprightness; honesty, sincerity”. Integrity is indeed, the most essential attribute of a welfare state. The first five year plan rightly emphasized: Integrity in public affairs and administration is essential and there must, therefore, be an insistence on it in every branch by public activity. The influence on corruption is insidious. It undermines the structure of administration and the confidence of the public in the administration.

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INTRODUCTION

The dictionary defined integrity as soundness of moral principles, the character of uncorrupted virtues; uprightness; honesty, sincerity”. Integrity is indeed, the most essential attribute of a welfare state. The first five year plan rightly emphasized: Integrity in public affairs and administration is essential and there must, therefore, be an insistence on it in every branch by public activity. The influence on corruption is insidious. It undermines the structure of administration and the confidence of the public in the administration. Therefore, be a continuous war against every species of corruption within the administration.”

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CORRUPTION IN INDIAN ADMINISTRATION

Deviation from normal standards or lack of integrity takes various shapes in the form of Corruption, patronage and undue influence. Bribery, nepotism, misuse of power or influence, black marketing, profiteering and similar other practices are not all that is meant by corruption. In fact, anyone wasting public money lacks integrity leads to corruption. In general terms, corruption may be defined as the deliberate and intentional exploitation of one‟s position, status or resources directly or indirectly, for personal aggrandizement whether it be in terms of material gain or enhancement of power, prestige or influence beyond what is legitimate or sanctioned by commonly accepted norms to the detriment of the interests of other persons or the community a s a whole. According to D.H. Bailey, “It is misuse of authority as well as a result of consideration

of personal gain, which need not be monetary”.

ASPECTS OF CORRUPTION

Corruption has two aspects (i) Political aspects &

(ii) Bureaucratic aspects.

As far as from the political point of view is concerned, as we all know that starting from the top political leaders of the country to the bottom majority of persons are involved in the process of corruption and because of this no civil society and no more good students is aspiring to become the Prime Minister of the country or a member of the Gram Sabha of a remote village.

As far as the bureaucrats are concerned, every one is aspiring for civil service either in the state level or at the centre. But, the system of the country in now a days is so much polluted and rusted that the bureaucrats or the civil servants are forcefully doing the unethical jobs unless they will be the victim under the mafia-raj or gunda-raj of our society and be suspended like DurgaShakti Nagpal (IAS) in Goutam Budha Nagar, (SDM) Uttar Pradesh recently.

PLACES WHERE CORRUPTION HELD IN INDIA

Corruption is now a buzzword in everyones‟ mind that when we open a daily newspaper many cases we find. But to some extent I am citing some examples where such cases happenings regularly;

(i) In administration Government officials taking bribes.

(ii) In railway services staring from the recruitment process upto the ticket reservation system.

(iii) In Army & Defence Services the cases like Bofors issue & Tehelka.com

(iv) In Export &Import cases like Hawala scams.

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(vi) In the International Cricket matches the cases like Match Fixing.

(vii) In giving direct or indirect taxes to Govt. many persons are playing a fake role.

(viii) In abusing and misusing of the Govt. Rules & Regulations, properties by the officials and common people also.

(ix) In taking admission to different educational institutions so many cases happens.

(x) In the reservation policies so many irregularities are held.

(xi) In the cases like land acquisition and Mines distribution various leaders are involved.

(xii) Other so many factors also responsible for this.

Corruption in India is a major issue and adversely affects its economy. A 2005 study conducted by Transparency International in India found that more than 62% of Indians had firsthand experience of paying bribes or influence peddling to get jobs done in public offices successfully. In its 2008 study, Transparency International reports about 40% of Indians had firsthand experience of paying bribes or using a contact to get a job done in public office. In 2012 India has ranked 94th out of 176 countries in Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index.

Most of the largest sources of corruption in India are entitlement programmes and social spending schemes enacted by the Indian government. Examples include Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and National Rural Health Mission. Other daily sources of corruption include India's trucking industry which is forced to pay billions in bribes annually to numerous regulatory and police stops on its interstate highways. Indian media has widely published allegations of corrupt Indian citizens stashing trillions of dollars in Swiss banks. Swiss authorities, however, deny these allegations.

As of December 2008, 120 of India's 523 parliament members were accused of crimes, under India's First Information Report procedure wherein anyone can allege another of committing a crime. Many of the biggest scandals since 2010 have involved very high levels of government, including Cabinet Ministers and Chief Ministers, such as in the 2G spectrum scam, the 2010 Commonwealth Games scam and the Adarsh Housing Society scam, Coal Mining Scam, mining scandal in Karnataka and cash for vote scam.

CLAIMED TRENDS

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A 2011 KPMG study reports India's real estate, telecommunications and government-run social development projects as the three top most corruption plagued sectors. The study found India's defence, information technology industry and energy sectors are the most competitive and least corruption prone sectors.

CMS India claims in its 2010 India Corruption Study report that socio-economically weaker section of the Indian society is most adversely affected by government corruption – these include the rural and urban poor. The study additionally claims that corruption perception nationwide has decreased between 2005 to 2010. Over the 5-year period, significantly more number of people from the middle class as well as the poorest segments of Indian society surveyed, in all parts of the India, claimed government corruption had dropped over time, and they had lesser direct experiences with demands for bribes.

The table below compares the perceived anti-corruption effort across some of the major states in India. A rising index implies higher anti-corruption effort and falling corruption. According to this table, the states of Bihar and Gujarat have experienced significant improvements in their anti-corruption efforts, while the conditions have worsened in the state of Assam and West Bengal. Consistent with the results in this table, in 2012, a BBC News report claimed the state of Bihar has transformed in recent years to become the least corrupt state in India.

INDEX TRENDS IN MAJOR STATES BY RESPECTIVE ANTI-CORRUPTION EFFORT

State 1990–95 1996-00 2001–05 2006–10

Bihar 0.41 0.30 0.43 0.88

Gujarat 0.48 0.57 0.64 0.69

Andhra Pradesh 0.53 0.73 0.55 0.61

Punjab 0.32 0.46 0.46 0.60

Jammu & Kashmir 0.13 0.32 0.17 0.40

Haryana 0.33 0.60 0.31 0.37

Himachal Pradesh 0.26 0.14 0.23 0.35

Tamil Nadu 0.19 0.20 0.24 0.29

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INDEX TRENDS IN MAJOR STATES BY RESPECTIVE ANTI-CORRUPTION EFFORT

State 1990–95 1996-00 2001–05 2006–10

Karnataka 0.24 0.19 0.20 0.29

Rajasthan 0.27 0.23 0.26 0.27

Kerala 0.16 0.20 0.22 0.27

Maharashtra 0.45 0.29 0.27 0.26

U.P 0.11 0.11 0.16 0.21

Orissa 0.22 0.16 0.15 0.19

Assam 0.21 0.02 0.14 0.17

West Bengal 0.11 0.08 0.03 0.01

CAUSES OF DECLINING THE INTEGRITY IN CIVIL SERVICES

So many causes are responsible for the declining the morality and integrity of the civil servants. Some of the causes are: (i) Historical Causes, (ii) Environmental causes, (iii) Economic causes, (iv) Lack of strong public opinion against the corrupt officials, (v) Complicated and cumbersome procedure & working of government officers, (vi) Inadequate laws to deal with corruption, (vii) Undue protection given to public services in India, (viii) Role of pressure groups in society in a corrupt way, (ix) lack of morality & proper education, (x) Lack of People‟s participation etc.

LEGAL FRAMEWORK TO CHECK CORRUPTION & ANTI-CORRUPTION MEASURES

Starting from the period of India‟s Independence since today so many Anti-Corruption measures have been taken by the Govt. of India & many state Governments, but all goes in vein. The measures are:

1. Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947.

2. Civil Servant Conduct Rules:

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(ii) Central Civil Services(conduct) Rules,1955,

(iii) Railway Services(Conduct) Rules,1956

3. Santhanam Committee on Prevention of Corruption in 1962:

(i) Art. 311 should be amended.

(ii) Re-organization of the entire vigilance organization.

(iii) Recommendation with regard to disciplinary rules include withdrawal of pension, in full or part, compulsory retirement of Govt. servants in completion of 25 years of service or after attaining 50years of age.

(iv) Laws, rules, procedures & practices for the purpose of deciding the level of discretionary powers.

(v) The defence of India Bill, 1962 should be amended.

(vi) Ban of Govt. officials accepting private or commercial employment for 2years after retirement.

(vii) There should be independent Central Vigilance Commission.

This committee on Prevention of Corruption had made 137 recommendations act of these 106 were accepted by Govt. of India.

4. Central Vigilance Commission (CVC).

5. Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in 1963.

6. Institution of Lok Pal & Lok Ayukta.

7. Suggestions for improvement of Integrity in Civil Services:

(i) Making conditions of service attractive.

(ii) Simplification of working of Govt. machinery.

(iii) Creation of a healthy public opinion against the effects of corruption.

(iv) Ensuring High standards of conduct among the top personnel etc.

Public servants in India can be penalised for corruption under the

Indian Penal Code, 1860

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The Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988

The Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 1988 to prohibit benami transactions.

Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002

India is also a signatory to the UN Convention against Corruption since 2005 (ratified 2011). The Convention covers a wide range of acts of corruption and also proposes

certain preventive policies.

ANTI-CORRUPTION POLICE AND COURTS

The Directorate General of Income Tax Investigation, Central Vigilance Commission and Central Bureau of Investigation all deal with anti-corruption initiatives. Certain states such as Andhra Pradesh (Andhra Pradesh Anti-corruption Bureau) and Karnataka (Lokayukta) also have their own anti-corruption agencies and courts.

Andhra Pradesh's Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) has launched a large scale investigation in the “cash-for-bail” scam. CBI court judge Talluri Pattabhirama Rao was arrested on 19 June 2012 for taking a bribe to grant bail to former Karnataka Minister Gali Janardhan Reddy, who was allegedly amassing assets disproportionate to his known sources of income. Investigation revealed that India Cements – one of India's largest cement – had been investing in Reddy's businesses in return for government contracts. A case has also been opened against seven other individuals under the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act.

ANTI-CORRUPTION ORGANISATIONS

A variety of organisations have been created in India to actively fight against corrupt government and business practices. Notable organisations include:

Bharat Swabhiman Trust established by well known Yog Guru Swami Ramdev running a large campaign against black money and corruption since last 10 years.

5th Pillar is most known for the creation of the zero rupee note, a valueless note designed to be given to corrupt officials when they request bribes.

India Against Corruption is a movement created by a citizens from a variety of professions and statuses to work against corruption in India. It is currently headed by Anna Hazare.

Jaago Re! One Billion Votes is an organisation originally founded by Tata Tea and Janaagraha to increase youth voter registration. They have since expanded their work to include other social issues, including corruption.

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One organisation, the Lok Satta Movement, has transformed itself from a civil organisation to a full-fledged political party, the Lok Satta Party. The party has fielded candidates in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Bangalore. In 2009, it obtained its first elected post, when Jayaprakash Narayan won the election for the Kukatpally Assembly Constituency in Andhra Pradesh.

CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS

It has been argued that the struggle to promote human rights and the campaign against corruption share a great deal of common ground. A corrupt government that rejects both transparency and accountability is not likely to respect human rights. Therefore, the campaign to contain corruption and the movement to protect and promote human rights are not disparate processes. They are inextricably linked and interdependent and both the elimination of corruption and the strengthening of human rights require a strong integrity system. In the present context corruption is so much linked with power that our politicians have adopted a cynical attitude towards political morality. Maneuvering the anti-defection law for electoral politics with the help of both money and muscle power and other unfair means for the sake of power have affected the political morality of all political parties and as such none of them can claim themselves to be faithful to nation in true sense.

Based on the recommendations of the ARC, many attempts were made from 1968 onwards for the establishment of Lokpal at the Central Level. The Govt. of India introduced the Bill for this purpose in the Parliament in 1968, 1971, 1977, 1985, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2005, 20083, but could not be passed by the Parliament and that‟s the reason that the Centre is yet to get a Lokpal. But with the initiative taken recently by the civil society headed by Anna Hazare, the centre agreed to set up the institution of Lokpal after introducing the Bill in the parliament in this year. But team civil society is again giving threat to the government for anomalies in the said Bill drafted by the Govt. by commenting it as „Jokpal Bill‟. Because, the civil society want to include every Government officials from top to bottom. Currently, the member of the civil society are divided among themselves to built a political party, and by taking this opportunity, the Govt. also in a pleasure-mood not to take measure to set up a institution like „Lok Pal‟ for India.

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