Letters: Justice derailed

Apropos the report, "India ill-prepared to fight corruption" (December 2), corruption-control through legislative means has failed to reform the guilty or serve as a deterrent to potential offenders. Investigation into corruption cases is a long-winding process, and the justice delivery route taxes one's patience. Of the several scams, starting with the Bofors gun to the current coalgate, few have resulted in well-timed conviction. Procedural justice has been further tempered by the ease with which the accused manage to get bail for several years that enables them to lead a normal life.

Social sanctions can serve as a preventive measure to chastise the culprits, but instead these culprits are heralded, given the same social status and even elected in politics. A system is as good or bad as the person who uses it. Our education system does not emphasise moral values of life. It produces qualified students as well as unethical citizens who are catapulted to important positions in the society. While educational re-engineering would take time, what is needed is a vibrant, objective and quick investigation mechanism, and also a fast-track judiciary that aims at fair and timely delivery of justice. In the case of corruption, justice delayed is justice derailed.

Y G Chouksey, Pune

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