I have begun to wonder if corruption is an issue in this country at all. Everyone cries themselves hoarse about it, but nobody takes effective action.
About three years ago, I spoke to a Union Minister about rampant corruption in the country, particularly in the all-India Services. I said there were IAS officers whose assets were to the tune of a hundred crore rupees and there were IPS officers who had accumulated about 10 crore rupees’ worth of assets (not because they were less dishonest but because they did not have as many opportunities as their counterparts in the IAS to make money). The Minister was quite alarmed. He asked me to send a list of these officers and promised to take action.
I prepared the list very carefully (after consulting some other officers too) and sent it to the Minister. I looked forward to an explosion. I waited and continued to wait. Nothing happened. Finally, I picked up the courage to remind the Secretary to the Minister. I got a cryptic reply that the Minister had seen my letter. That was all. I was thoroughly disappointed.
A few months later, I happened to meet the then Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) at a function. I mentioned to him quietly my disappointment that the government had not initiated any action against the corrupt officers. The CVC, with an authoritative air, asked me to send the list to him. I was relieved. I thought I had found the man who would definitely do something. But what followed was deathly silence. No one asked me for any clarification or any supplementary information by way of evidence. The matter was given a quiet burial.
I said there were IAS officers whose assets were to the tune
of a hundred crore rupees and there were IPS officers who had
accumulated about 10 crore rupees’ worth of assets (not because
they were less dishonest but because they did not have as many
opportunities as their IAS counterparts to make money)
About six months ago, the India Rejuvenation Initiative embarked on an exercise to prepare a state-wise list of the most corrupt IAS/IPS officers. The UP list was the first to be prepared. It was sent to the state government. The IRI promised to provide any further information required. But there has been no response. The state government has not shown any inclination to take action against the tainted officers.
Yet another unfortunate experience was with the judiciary. In August 2005, I picked up the courage to address the Chief Justice of a state High Court about the corrupt judges under him. A brief resume was prepared about their questionable activities and sent to him, with a copy to the Chief Justice of India. The letter was sent with a feeling of trepidation that I might be hauled up for contempt of court for tarnishing the image of certain judges. Strangely, there was no response. Neither any contempt notice nor any follow-up action. I may clarify that all the aforesaid letters were sent on my letter pad and were signed by me.
So, what is one to infer from all this? The people in power, irrespective of what they might say in public, have no commitment to combating corruption. There is a policy of 100 per cent tolerance in this matter.
It is my conclusion that if there is one common thread running through the major problems of the country – whether of Jammu and Kashmir, the Northeast or the Naxal problem – it is the issue of corruption. Where will this lead the country? I suspect it will prove the Achilles’ heel of our otherwise vibrant democracy and booming economy.
