Mouli Mareedu Hyderabad

TheForum for Good Governance (FGG) has urged the Chief Secretary to direct the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) to proceed with the prosecution of officials booked in trap cases without insisting on prior approval under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, wherever such approval is not legally required.

The forum has also sought instructions to all concerned Secretariat departments to review cases pending solely for want of prior approval and return them to the ACB for necessary action wherever such approval is not mandatory.

FGG secretary M Padmanabha Reddy said corruption in administration remained a serious concern in Telangana. The common man was often compelled to pay bribes even to obtain services and benefits to which they were legally entitled, he said.

He said the Telangana ACB was doing commendable work at the field level by registering an average of 20 to 25 cases every month. However, he alleged that inquiry reports submitted by the ACB Director General seeking permission to prosecute accused officials faced undue delays and interference at the government level.

Even clear-cut trap cases, in which officials were allegedly caught red-handed while accepting bribes, had remained pending for years and were eventually referred for departmental inquiries, he said. This forced the ACB to withdraw or discontinue prosecution proceedings before courts, he alleged.

Reddy further stated that permission to prosecute had reportedly been refused in 22 cases over the past couple of years, with the ACB being directed to withdraw the cases.

He alleged that the Telangana Secretariat was acting as a protective shield for officials implicated in ACB cases, sending the wrong signal to government employees and potentially encouraging corrupt practices.

Pointing out that some officials had been booked by the ACB more than once, Reddy said the FGG had submitted several representations urging the government to grant prosecution approval whenever sought by the ACB. He alleged that a strong lobby within the Secretariat was working to protect officials facing corruption charges.