Conviction rate in corruption cases just double: Raj ACB

The conviction rate in corruption cases against the employees of Rajasthan State Services has doubled from 30 per cent to 60 per cent in the last five years, a senior Anti Corruption Bureau official said today.
"In the first six months of this year, ACB has probed 347 cases of corruption, mainly of bribery against the non-gazetted and gazetted state employees as against 567 cases in 2012," Ajit Singh, Director General, ACB said here.
Out of 567, chargesheet was filed in 253 cases, and in 79 the final report has been tabled in the court, he said.
According to Singh, the department has conducted raids not only on non-gazetted employees but also on IAS and IPS officers, leading to a rise in conviction rate from 30 per cent to 60 per cent.

Quoting current statistics, he said Revenue department was on top of the corruption list with 66 cases registered against it in 2013, followed by Police, 51, Panchayat, 39, Medical and Energy, 31, and Urban Development and Housing, 28.
On being asked about the pendency of important corruption cases, Singh said, it was due to state Forensic Science Laboratory's (FSL) "very slow" process of verifying samples and "delay" by the state government issuing the prosecution permission.

"The state FSL presently headed by an IAS officer instead of an IPS might be very competent, but I feel it is in a compromised situation in some cases sent by the ACB," he said.

"Prosecution permission sought by the ACB used to take a long route in secretariat because it goes through a proper channels in various departments like personnel, home, chief minister office, and there might be some hurdles till we receive permission," the DG said.
The top ACB official claimed that the quality of investigation and prosecution are far better than other states.
"Informer system and organising trap after receiving complaint are fool proof, and ACB takes no chance to collect evidences and documents so that it could defend its case at any level of the courts", DG-ACB said.
On being asked whether or not ACB faces any political pressure, he said, "Look at our figures of trap and conviction rate... We work in free and fair manner, and the state government comes to know about the corruption case after the ACB raid not before that".