Sitting amid the blackened remains of his home, 32-year-old Nikesh Gawali carefully broke open a half-melted plastic box with a screwdriver. His hands shook slightly, not out of fear, but out of hope. “I’m trying to find my daughter Aarti’s gold earrings,” he said quietly, still focused on the box. “She’s just five. I got them made recently after months of labour work.” The plastic box, warped and blackened by heat, was one of the few things left from his two-room house on the outskirts of Dhamangaon village . All around him lay ash, broken tin sheets and charred wooden beams. The walls had cracked under the heat and the front room’s tin roof had caved in completely. What remained was a blackened debris all around - almost nothing to suggest a home once stood there. Nikesh earns his living as an agricultural labourer, like many in the village. Work is uncertain and depends on the season. Those earrings weren’t just jewellery - they were a small dream, a reward for his hard work,...
Published on November 4, 2019
Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Nagpur Division has recorded its lowest conviction rate in the last three years with mere 13 per cent convictions this year till October. According to the information provided by the ACB, graph of conviction rate is more or less static, nor there is any significant rise nor any alarming drop.
Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Nagpur Division has recorded its lowest conviction rate in the last three years with mere 13 per cent convictions this year till October. According to the information provided by the ACB, graph of conviction rate is more or less static, nor there is any significant rise nor any alarming drop.
Before 2017, ACB’s recorded 24 per cent conviction rate in the year 2017 and later dropped to 16 per cent in year 2018 and now dipped to al l time low of 13 per cent. The trend of falling conviction rate as seen during the three years is a worrisome development and is a set back in fight to eradication corruption in public places.
In 2017, trials in 59 cases were completed and ACB secured conviction in only 14. Trials in 77 cases were completed in year 2018 and ACB managed to secure conviction in 12 cases. Out of 66 cases decided in the court, the ACB managed to get conviction in just eight cases and 58 accused government officials were honourably acquitted by the court.
An ACB official said that the low conviction rate could be due to long pendency of cases. The delay dilutes the evidence as witnesses tend to have weak memory in recalling exact details thereby providing advantage to defence.
In the past few years, the number of courts trying ACB cases has increased and the number of cases completing trials every year has subsequently gone up. However, in 2017 the number of cases completing trials has dipped (see table).
Superintendent of Police (ACB) Rashmi Nandedkar said that the ACB was studying each and every case where the accused was acquitted to find out the reasons for the acquittal. Another official said that informer system and organising traps after receiving complaint are being made fool proof with an eye on securing conviction.
Some of the new measures undertaken by the ACB include asking the complainant to submit complaint in his handwriting and to video record the entire procedure of conducting traps. The videography is an impeccable method of evidence and expects to bring about better conviction rate.
The ACB officials are expecting that the new measures will help improve the conviction rate in coming years.
ACB informed that the acquittals are taking place in old cases where the value of evidence is weak due to multiple reasons, including influence by the accused or the witness turning hostile. On that count also study is on to devise new measures to ensure that cases are made foolproof.
Addl SP Rajesh Duddhalwar and DySP Milind Totre were present during interaction with the SP Nandedkar.
87 government officials arrested for corruption
ACB's Nagpur Division has arrested as many as 87 corrupt Government officials and their mediators this year till October. As per data compiled by the ACB, a total of 121 erring Government officials and their "middlemen" were nabbed during last year and 110 were nabbed in year 2017. This year Nagpur unit arrested 29 corrupt Government officials, followed by 19 by Gondia District unit, 17 by Bhandara, 10 by Gadchiroli, seven by Chandrapur and five by Wardha unit respectively.
The ACB has investigated two cases of disproportionate assets till October this year while two were investigated in year 2018 and one in year 2018. However not a single case of misconduct was investigated by ACB this year as against 13 cases in year 2018 and eight in year 2017.
Comments
Post a Comment