Graft cases keep piling up

It is extremely disappointing to know that despite the Anti-Corruption Commission's efforts to curb corruption through filing of graft cases, the whole process is becoming ineffective because of legal tangles. It has lead to a huge number of cases piling up indefinitely. Apparently one of the reasons for this backlog is enactment of the Special Court (Additional Charge) Act 2003 which is busy trying criminal cases rather than graft cases. The result is that the rate of case disposal has gone down and fewer individuals found to have engaged in corruption are being punished. These include those involved in the Hallmark loan scam, BASIC bank loan scam and Destiny and Bismillah Groups money laundering cases. More than 3000 cases are awaiting disposal.

There are also other logistical bottlenecks causing the delay in justice. These include the high number of judge courts that are not functioning properly, a shortage of stenographers and delays in judgment. These obstacles can be easily removed.

As the ACC has suggested it would definitely speed up things if the special courts were relieved of other duties so that they could concentrate solely on graft cases. The law ministry can also direct the district sessions courts to transfer cases of graft to the special courts. The ACC can also create a priority list of cases – another good suggestion that would make sure that the more serious cases of corruption are disposed of first.

Unless the law ministry makes sure that all these impediments are removed it will be futile for the ACC to keep filing cases against the corrupt who will be allowed to roam free without worrying about being punished.