Corruption In India

According to Jitendra Singh, In the bad old days, particularly pre-1991, when the
License Raj held sway, and by design, all kinds of free market mechanisms were
hobbled or stymied, and corruption emerged almost as an illegitimate price
mechanism, a shadowy quasi-market, such that scarce resources could still be
allocated within the economy, and decisions could get made. These were largely
distortions created by the politico-economic regime. While the sea change has
occurred in the years following 1991, some of the distorted cultural norms that took
hold during the earlier period are slowly being repaired by the sheer forces of
competition. The process will be long and slow, however. It will not change overnight.
One of the major problems and the obstacles to development that many countries
face is corruption by greedy, power-rapacious politicians, which is endemic in certain
parts of the world.
POLITICS- Corruption not only has become a pervasive aspect of Indian politics but
also has become an increasingly important factor in Indian elections. The extensive
role of the Indian state in providing services and promoting economic development
has always created the opportunity for using public resources for private benefit. As
government regulation of business was extended in the 1960s and corporate
donations were banned in 1969, trading economic favours for the under table
contribution to political parties became an increasingly widespread political practice.
During the 1980s and 1990s, corruption became associated with the occupants of the
highest echelons of Indias political system. Politicians have become so closely
identified with corruption in the public eye that a Times of India poll of 1554 adults in
six metropolitan cities found that 98 percent of the public is convinced that politicians
and ministers are corrupt, with 85 percent observing that corruption is on the
increase.
The prominence of political corruption in India is hardly unique to India. Other
countries also have experienced corruption that has rocked their political systems.
What is remarkable about India is the persistent anti-incumbent sentiment among its
electorate. In July 2008, The Washington Post reported that nearly a fourth of the 540
Indian Parliament members faced criminal charges, including human trafficking,
immigration rackets, embezzlement, rape and even murder.
Bureaucracy- A 2005 study done by transparency International, TI, in India found
that more than 50% of people had first-hand experience of paying bribe or peddling
influence to get a job done in public office. Officials often steal state property. In Bihar,
more than 80% of the subsidized food aid to poor is stolen. In cities and villages
throughout India, Mafia Raj consisting of municipal and other Government officials,
elected politicians, judicial officers, real estate developers and law enforcement
officials, acquire, develop and sell land in illegal ways. Many state-funded
construction activities in India, such as road building are dominated by construction
mafias, which are groupings of corrupt public works officials, material suppliers,
politicians and construction contractors. Shoddy construction and material substitution
result in roads and highways being dangerous and sometime simply washed away
when Indias heavy monsoon season arrives. More often than not, minorities and

minority-dominated areas bear the brunt of bureaucratic corruption, especially at the

lower levels. In government hospitals, corruption is associated with non-availability of
medicines, getting admission, consultants with doctors and availing diagnostic
services.
Judiciary- Corruption is rampant in the judicial system of India. According to
Transparency International, judicial corruption in India is attributable to factors such
as delays in the disposal of cases, shortage of judges and complex procedures, all of
which are exacerbated by a preponderance of new laws.
Armed Forces and Police- Indian Armed Forces since long time have witnessed
corruption involving senior armed forces officers from the Indian Army, Indian Navy
and Indian Air Force. Many officers have been caught for allegedly selling weapons in
the black market in the border districts of Indian states and territories, which has
shaken public faith in the countrys massive military.
The police often torture innocent people until a confession is obtained to save
influential and wealthy offenders. G.P. Joshi, the programme coordinator of the Indian
branch of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative in New Delhi comments that
the main issue at hand concerning police violence is a lack of accountability.
Religious Institutions-In India, the corruption has also crept into religious
institutions. Some deacons of the church of North India are making money by selling
Baptism certificates. A group of church leaders and activists has launched a
campaign to combat the corruption within churches. Among the Indian Muslims, the
recent cash for fatwas scandal was a major affair that exposed the Imams of the
Islamic ulama accepting bribes for issuing random, often nonsensical fatwas. The
chief economic consequences of corruption are the loss to the economy, an
unhealthy climate for investment and an increase in the cost of Governmentsubsidised services. The TI India study estimates the monetary value of the petty
corruption in the eleven basic services provided by the Government, like education,
healthcare, judiciary, police, etc., to be around Rs.21,068 crores. India still ranks in
the bottom quartile of developing countries in terms of the ease of doing business,
and compared to China and other lower developed Asian nations, the average time
taken to secure the clearance for a start-up or to invoke bankruptcy is much greater.