Anti-Corruption cases - Punishment.

Government Circular No.GAD (S-1)25 SSR 57 dated 13th September 1957
Sub:- Anti-Corruption cases - Punishment.

In an anti-corruption case in which a Sub-Registrar, a Clerk, an Attender and a Peon were involved and the evidence established that (a) the Sub-Registrar had taken a bribe directly in one case and clouded in the taking of a bribe in the second case, (b) the clerk had taken bribe directly in one case, (c) the peon had actively participated in the first case of bribery, and (d) the attender had directly received the bribe in the second case, the recommendation that the head of the office and clerk be reduced to a lower stage of the time-scale that the attender be removed from service and the peon compulsorily retired was accepted and orders issued accordingly.
2. The case came to notice recently on a review petition. The Chief Minister has observed on this case as follows:-
"I very much wanted to revise the order, But in view of the orders, dated 12th January 1956 and 14th September 1956, I do not want to disturb them. There should be finality. Yet I would like to make an observation. While the more educated and responsible officials like the Sub-Registrar and the clerk from whom, in view of their superior status better moral conduct is expected are punished by lowering their salaries, these two poor possibly illiterate officials, the attender and the peon, are so heavily punished by being dismissed with service. I feel it would have been more equitable and just if the two educated officials the Sub-Registrar and the clerk, had been dismissed and the peon and attender had their pay lowered. That I feel would be maintaining better standards of meeting out justice. I wish this is accepted in future.
3. In bringing these observations to your notice it is requested that the authority awarding punishment should see that the punishment is not only commensurate with the offence but bears a relation also to the relative degrees of responsibility and sense of duty which officials at various levels are expected to display.