ISLAMABAD: Last year, 3,041 corruption cases relating to different government departments were reported to the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE), Rawalpindi, but anti-corruption court could decide only 24 cases hence the conviction rate was 0.79 per cent.

Official sources said that about 80 per cent corruption cases were detected in the revenue and police departments while 20 per cent complaints were filed against the officials of education, local government, tehsil municipal administration, communication and works, forest and health departments.

Though the ACE Rawalpindi conducted some raids last year and arrested 114 ‘corrupt’ officials, none of them was of grade 17 officer or above. Out of 114 arrests, 111 were officials of BPS 1 to 15 and only three were of BPS-16.

Out of 3,041 corruption cases, only 24 were decided last year

Rawalpindi, Attock, Jehlum and Chakwal districts fall in the jurisdiction of the Rawalpindi region ACE.

According to the statistics, during 2013 the ACE dealt with 1,143 complaints lodged against the government officials of these districts.

Out of 1,143 complaints, 627 were assigned to different officers, 178 referred to the departments concerned, and in 195 complaints FIRs were lodged against the officials while the rest were disposed of.

During this period, the ACE also conducted 1,356 inquiries against the government officials and registered FIRs in 299 cases. Charges in 467 cases were dropped after initial investigation or settlement between complainants and officials. The ACE closed 803 cases and referred 37 cases to departments concerned while 553 cases are still to be decided.

Similarly, the ACE, after conducting inquiries, submitted 114 challans in the Anti-Corruption Court (ACC) of Rawalpindi which convicted only 24 officials.

According to an official of the ACE, the low conviction was a result of out of court settlement between the parties.

The official said with meager resources and limited authority the establishment could not eliminate corruption on its own as it was a collective responsibility.

According to him, under the Punjab Employees Efficiency and Discipline Act (PEDA), the competent authorities in different government departments can take disciplinary action against the corrupt officials and even can dismissed them from service.

The official, however, said the departments prefer to shift their responsibility on the ACE to avoid retaliation from the powerful corrupt officials.

Insiders say, in revenue and police departments, officials enjoy political clout therefore the departments heads avoid taking action against the ‘corrupt officials’.

They said that the officials like patwari, tehsildar and some police inspectors with the backing of some key politicians even get a commissioner and other senior officials transferred.

Owing to the fact, the corrupt officials not only go scot-free but also manage to get themselves transferred to their place of choice, they further said.

According to them, the ACE cannot touch the officials who enjoy political backing and if it arrests some of them, they are acquitted because of friendly prosecution.

Khawaja Shoail, the government prosecutor who represents ACE in the anti-corruption court when contacted blamed the low conviction on out of court settlement.

Denying political involvement in prosecution of the corrupt officials, he said that when a complainant himself withdrew complaint the prosecutor could not press him to continue and the court in such matters had no option but to release the accused.

Published in Dawn, June 29th, 2014