The arrest a ward officer of Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) and several engineers in recent raids by J&K Anti-Corruption Bureau (J&K ACB) followed by arrest of an disengaged engineer of J&K Housing Boards for his fake projection as SLTC expert and three others in a cheating case related to fake job promises by Crime Branch Kashmir shows that while fight against corruption and crime continues unabated but yet again corruption and crime don’t head to any dead end due to low intensity cooperation of the people in Jammu & Kashmir. The corruption attracting the attention of controlling officers in SMC or any engineering department only after arrests of the accused by J&K Anti-Corruption Bureau (J&K ACB) shows that people heading the Government departments don’t keep vigil over the actions of the corrupt and consequently they come to know about corrupt practices in their departments only after the intervention of anti-graft bodies like J&K Anti-Corruption Bureau (J&K ACB). As far as the rising intensity of different social crimes is concerned, the victims approaching crime branch about the criminal activities is a good trend which can hopefully break the chains of criminal activities in both Kashmir Valley and as well as Jammu division . A disengaged engineer of J&K Housing Board falling into the nets of Kashmir Crime Branch after a complaint about his claim of being an SLTC expert catches the attention of the authorities’ shows that people tend to commit crimes even after holding public offices in the Government. Unfortunately the trend of cheating people by promising jobs against hefty amounts also does not head to any dead end in Jammu & Kashmir and instead this bad trend is intensifying in nook and corner of Jammu & Kashmir week after week, month after month and year after year.
Though there is need to introduce some institutional changes in the procedures and practices of investigation in both the J&K Anti-Corruption Bureau (J& ACB) and Crime Branch of Jammu & Kashmir Police for completion of the investigation process and punishment to guilty in short time but even then onus of identifying both the corrupt and criminals lies on the people who are the victims of both the corruption and as well as social crimes.
While Government’s probing agencies like J&K Anti-Corruption Bureau (J&K ACB) and Crime Branch of J&K Police carrying out war against corrupt and criminals respectively at an accelerated pace is a good omen for institutional transparency and public accountability in Jammu & Kashmir, the onus finally lies on the people without whose active cooperation the fight against either corruption or crime can’t be taken to logical conclusion. Though there is need to introduce some institutional changes in the procedures and practices of investigation in both the J&K Anti-Corruption Bureau (J& ACB) and Crime Branch of Jammu & Kashmir Police for completion of the investigation process and punishment to guilty in short time but even then onus of identifying both the corrupt and criminals lies on the people who are the victims of both the corruption and as well as social crimes.
