ESSAY GUIDANCE-3

1. INDIA
Lokpal: Deficiencies in the present anti-corruption systems Central Government level
At central Government level, there is Central Vigilance Commission, Departmental vigilance and CBI. CVC and
Departmental vigilance deal with vigilance (disciplinary proceedings) aspect of a corruption case and CBI deals
with criminal aspect of that case.
Central Vigilance Commission: CVC is the apex body for all vigilance cases in Government of India.
· However, it does not have adequate resources commensurate with the large number of complaints that it
receives. CVC is a very small set up with a staff strength less than 200. It is supposed to check corruption in
more than 1500 central government departments and ministries, some of them being as big as Central
Excise, Railways, Income Tax etc. Therefore, it has to depend on the vigilance wings of respective
departments and forwards most of the complaints for inquiry and report to them. While it monitors the
progress of these complaints, there is delay and the complainants are often disturbed by this. It directly
enquires into a few complaints on its own, especially when it suspects motivated delays or where senior
officials could be implicated. But given the constraints of manpower, such number is really small.
· CVC is merely an advisory body. Central Government Departments seek CVC’s advice on various
corruption cases. However, they are free to accept or reject CVC’s advice. Even in those cases, which are
directly enquired into by the CVC, it can only advise government. CVC mentions these cases of nonacceptance
in its monthly reports and the Annual Report to Parliament. But these are not much in focus in
Parliamentary debates or by the media.
· Experience shows that CVC’s advice to initiate prosecution is rarely accepted and whenever CVC advised
major penalty, it was reduced to minor penalty. Therefore, CVC can hardly be treated as an effective
deterrent against corruption.
· CVC cannot direct CBI to initiate enquiries against any officer of the level of Joint Secretary and above on
its own. The CBI has to seek the permission of that department, which obviously would not be granted if the
senior officers of that department are involved and they could delay the case or see to it that permission
would not be granted.
· CVC does not have powers to register criminal case. It deals only with vigilance or disciplinary matters.
· It does not have powers over politicians. If there is an involvement of a politician in any case, CVC could at
best bring it to the notice of the Government. There are several cases of serious corruption in which officials
and political executive are involved together.
· It does not have any direct powers over departmental vigilance wings. Often it is seen that CVC forwards a
complaint to a department and then keeps sending reminders to them to enquire and send report. Many a
times, the departments just do not comply. CVC does not have any really effective powers over them to seek
compliance of its orders.