On its
website and in print, Times of India [ April 17,2011 ] mentions a working paper
by Kaushik Basu, Chief Economic Adviser to the Government of India, in which he
is supposed to have suggested that that those who pay bribes should not be
penalized because they would then be encouraged to report the crime after they
have committed it. This will make the bribe receiver too scared to ask for it.
This, he claims, could substantially bring down everyday corruption.
"It is being argued is that this entire punishment (for the act of corruption) should be heaped on the bribe taker and the bribe giver should not be penalized at all, at least not for the act of offering or giving the bribe," he suggested.
On the face
of it, this looks like a good suggestion provided the Lokpal Bill provides for
the following :
Ø
Bribe
should have been given only for getting a service that was legally due to the
bribe-giver and was being denied
Ø
Onus
of proving [ that a bribe was given / accepted ], must lie with the bribe-giver
Ø
Complaint
must be specific and provide details in respect of a claimed incidence of
bribing
Ø
If
it turns out that the complaint was false / mischievous / malicious and
cannot be proved, then the Lokpal Act must provide for severe punishment to the
complainant – in order to deter harassment of honest officials
I hope,
Drafting Committee will thoroughly consider all aspects.
With
regards
hemen
parekh
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