Corruption Lives On (November 9)

Manipur has a long list of scandals in which names of top ranking Officials and Ministers figure prominently. This should not be surprising given the fact that corruption has become an institution in Manipur, one of the most backward states in the country.

Institution, as they say never dies only individuals die. The height of corruption has reached such an alarming level that becoming a member of the Manipur Legislative Assembly has become a lucrative business. It is because of this fact that some of the Chief Ministerial candidates in the last few elections had spent lakhs of money if not crores. Horse-trading is an open business; if one wishes to occupy the top post his purse should be bottomless. 

Given such a scenario one should not expect the authorities to bring unscrupulous and corrupt elements to book. The lottery scandal, which involves waiving of outstanding dues to agents by those in power, in return for a huge payback could be regarded as an institution.

Several years after the scandal came to light many governments have changed and Ministers came and went, but the case still runs and one should not expect that those guilty persons will ever be caught and punished. Another sensational case is the Rs. two crores ex-gratia scandal. It involves fraudulent withdrawal of ex-gratia for people, who have never existed and militants killed by the security forces.

What is more the case of burning of the State Education Directorate was found to have been turned into an ex-gratia case. After a hue and cry during the then Nipamacha Ministry, one doctor and one police officer had been promptly placed under suspension. As expected both the officials have not been reinstated. 
Even the State Home Department is not free from the scourge of this social evil. There were a number of uniform scandals and not a single official or police officer has been named, not to talk of pulling him up and meting out punishment. That is not all. 

Fake appointments are galore particularly in the Education Department. Teachers have been appointed and paid their salaries on the basis of fact appointment orders. No one will agree that officials are not involved in the case. The State Vigilance Commission, the State's own version of the "most wanted" CBI have managed to arrest a few persons appointed with fake orders, but none of the persons behind this racket are pulled up. 

These are some of the telling commentaries of how abysmal and ineffective of our administration and criminal justice system is. 

The Opposition parties highlighted these while the issues are very hot, but they too seem to have washed their hands off. They will remember them in times of elections. We don't believe that those responsible for siphoning of public money and money laundering will ever be found out and made to pay for their misdeeds.

Cases have also been handed to the CBI, but it makes little differences. The trend is very dangerous for the state. Accepting that corruption should be allowed to a part and parcel of our life is most dangerous.

(Courtesy: The Sangai Express)

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