Govt assures refund in a month to complainants in graft cases………Sanjeev Shivadekar
MUMBAI: In a bid to encourage more people to come up with complaints against corrupt government officials, the state has decided to rework the rules to ensure that those who have trapped government officials accepting bribe from them would get their money back within a month.
“The state government will return the money of the complainant within one month,” said home minister R R Patil. The decision to this effect was taken by Patil in the meeting with anti-corruption bureau (ACB) officials in Mantralaya on Friday. Chandra Iyengar, additional chief secretary (home) and acting DG of state, A N Roy, were present.
Earlier, for instance, if a complainant gave Rs 10,000 to a government official and was trapped by the ACB, the money could not be returned to the complainant unless there was a verdict in the case. “Getting refund in most cases takes inordinate time. As a result, many citizens avoid coming forward to lodge complaints against the culprits. To encourage citizens to help curb corruption, the government wants to ensure that a complainant gets back his money in one month,” the minister said.
Patil has directed all government departments to form a separate vigilance cell within the department to keep tabs on such malpractices.
“If the department fails to control corruption at its level, then the ACB can be approached,” Patil said, adding, “Government employees suspected of involvement in cases of corruption, should not be posted or appointed at key posts in the department.”
The home minister has also directed his department to spend funds meant for police modernising and welfare before the end of the financial year.