*Premier agency facing acute shortage of IOs
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Nov 14: Contrary to the tall claims of the PDP-BJP Coalition Government about strengthening anti-corruption institutions to curb deep-rooted menace, which has earned bad name to Jammu and Kashmir in the country, the premier anti-corruption body of the State— Vigilance Organization is headless during the past four and half months. Moreover, the proposal regarding reorganization of this anti-graft body to maximize its utilization and obtain best possible results is gathering dust in the Civil Secretariat during the past quite long time as a result of which this organization is facing acute shortage of the Investigating Officers.
The State Vigilance Organization is headed by Director, an officer of the rank of Additional Director General of Police and senior level officers function under him are IGP Vigilance, DIG Vigilance and two AIGs—one looking after Policy matters and another functioning of the Headquarters.
The post of Director fell vacant on June 30 this year when the then Director Sheikh Owais Ahmed (ADGP) attained the age of superannuation. On the same day, the only post of DIG Vigilance fell vacant following superannuation of IPS officer J L Sharma.
Since then the post of Director as well as DIG continued to remain vacant because of the failure of the PDP-BJP Coalition Government to appoint new IPS officers to man these posts. “Though IGP Vigilance is looking after the work of post of Director Vigilance yet there is no justification behind keeping the vital organization entrusted with the responsibility of fighting deep rooted menace of corruption headless for four and half months”, official sources regretted.
Similarly, allowing the only DIG level post to remain vacant for such a long time carries no justification especially when tall claims are being made about strengthening the anti-corruption institutions, sources further said, adding “it is unfortunate that many Cabinet meetings were convened during the past four and half months but no step was initiated to provide new head to the State Vigilance Organization”.
At one point of time name of a senior IPS officer was considered for the post of Director Vigilance but the efforts to fill up the top post in State Vigilance Organization could not materialize and thereafter no serious steps were initiated to provide new head to this premier anti-graft body of the State, sources further said, adding “it is obvious that many vital decisions might be getting delayed in the absence of full time Director of the State Vigilance Organization”.
“What to talk of providing new head to the State Vigilance Organization, the Government is also soft-paddling on the proposal vis-à-vis restructuring of this anti-graft body despite the fact that process in this regard was set into motion on the directions of Governor N N Vohra before formulation of PDP-BJP Coalition Government in the State”, sources further regretted.
They disclosed that the present sanctioned strength of State Vigilance Organization is the same as it was more than a decade back and despite Jammu and Kashmir emerging as most corrupt State in the country no efforts were made to reorganize this anti-graft body to maximize its utilization and obtain best possible results. “On the contrary, only lofty slogans were made by the successive State Governments including the present regime about tackling menace of corruption with iron hands”, sources rued.
According to the sources in State Vigilance Organization, this body is facing acute shortage of even Investigating Officers (IOs), who otherwise are considered as vital organ of highest anti-graft body as they have to conduct probes into all the corruption related complaints. “In the absence of required number of Investigating Officers, the investigation in FIRs gets stretched beyond imagination and the accused officers remain unpunished for quite long time”, they further said, adding “moreover, the shortage of IOs compels the top brass of the Vigilance Organization to refer the cases to the departments for departmental enquiries, which never yield positive outcome”.
“The prevailing state of affairs in the State Vigilance Organization clearly indicates that even the present Government believes in making only tall claims instead of translating its statements into reality by strengthening this anti-corruption institution”, sources said.
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