Aadhar issue spawns corruption
Sivakumar B,TNN | Sep 28, 2015, 10.43 AM IST
CHENNAI: City resident Shubham Khandelwal was shocked when he was asked to pay up for having his finger prints and iris taken for issue of Aadhaar card. Not willing to pay any bribe, Shubham contacted an NGO, fighting corruption in government departments, and a complaint was sent to the Unique Identification Authority, Bengaluru following which the erring official was punished. There are several such complaints Janaagraha, the NGO involved in exposing corrupt officials, gets from the general public daily.
According to data available with TOI, the police department has maximum number of complaints about corruption and this is followed by the stamps and registration department. People from upper middle class and from others sections of society who have access to internet contact the NGO and file complaints about corrupt officials in various departments.
"Since its launch on August 15, 2010, Ipaidabribe.com has recorded over 47,000 bribe reports amounting to over Rs 280 crore from more than 600 cities and towns in India. Last year alone, it saw close to12,655 pay bribes and bribe hotline reports being posted. Similarly,149 honest officer reports applauding the integrity of officers were also posted," said Janaagraha's coordinator Sylvia Veeraraghavan. Citizens log on to the website and file their complaints if they had paid the bribe or refused to pay. "Based on the complaints, we send it to the concerned authorities and ask them to take action against officials who sought bribe," said Sylvia.
Manik Taneja, a sports enthusiast, was asked to cough up a hefty bribe by a customs official at Bengaluru airport for a Kayak he purchased from the US. After a prolonged argument, Manik paid the bribe, and then wrote about this incident on IPAB. His story, and his cooperation with custom officials, saw the official being put under temporary suspension, said Sylvia.
In TN, since 2010, the website has received a maximum of 776 complaints against the police department from people with Chennai alone accounting for 550 complaints. This is followed by 273 complaints against the stamps and registration department. The website has names of honest officers as well. In this category too, police department has the maximum number of officers who did not seek bribes. There are 24 such upright officers whose names have been recommended by people who had to deal with the department.