Haryana Anti Corruption Bureau conducted 152 raids and 226 arrests in 2023
The ACB registered 205 cases (including 152 traps) in 2023 which is the second-highest number during the last 10 years, director general (DG) ACB Shatrujeet Kapur said addressing a news conference
The Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) of Haryana in 2023 arrested 186 government servants, including 30 gazetted officers, and 40 private individuals and recovered ₹86 lakh on the spot under the drive against corruption in government departments.
The ACB registered 205 cases (including 152 traps) in 2023 which is the second-highest number during the last 10 years, director general (DG) ACB Shatrujeet Kapur said addressing a news conference.
“On average, 16 public servants were arrested on corruption charges every month,” said Kapur, who is also Haryana police chief.
Informing how the ACB has been able to crack down on such a large number of corrupt officials in the past year, Kapur said that the ACB has shifted its focus from junior-level staff to also include senior ranks, who are often the kingpins in running organised corruption rackets.
“The remarkable spurt in the number of raids and arrests of senior officials is being seen as a clean-up act by the Bureau under the directives of chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar as part of his zero-tolerance policy towards rooting out corruption at all levels,” Kapur said.
He said Khattar has approved various initiatives of ACB like setting up a revolving fund to provide ‘trap money’ to the aggrieved people lodging complaints against government officials demanding bribes. With this, complainants no longer have to worry about arranging the trap money from their own pockets, he added.
The government has also sanctioned 809 additional posts to strengthen ACB, changed the system of appointment of independent witnesses to check leakage of information, and created six Divisional Anti-Corruption Bureaus among others.
Kapur said ₹100 crore have been allocated to strengthen anti-corruption related initiatives in Haryana for the financial year 2023-2024.
He said during its ongoing crusade against corruption in 2023, the Bureau has registered 31 inquiries against 12 gazetted officers, 10 non-gazetted officials and seven private persons on the direction of the state government.
During the year, 82 inquiries were finalised and ACB has recommended registration of criminal case against 34 gazetted officers, 10 non-gazetted officials and 47 private persons in 14 inquiries. In 22 inquires, departmental action against 12 gazetted officers and 27 non-gazetted officials has been recommended and in yet another nine inquiries, registration of criminal cases along with departmental action against 19 gazetted officers, 32 non-gazetted officials and 66 private persons. Thus, in all action has been recommended against 65 gazetted officers, 69 non-gazetted officials and 113 private persons in 45 inquiries and the remaining 37 inquiries were closed as the allegations were not proved.
At least 10 technical reports were sent to the government in which the Bureau recommended departmental action against nine gazetted officers, five non-gazetted officers and to recover over ₹9 lakh from the concerned agencies, DG ACB Kapur said.
