Socio economic offences

1. JIMS Engineering Management Technical
Campus
48/4, Knowledge Park-III,Greater Noida - 201308
(Affiliated to Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi)
Subject Name: Socio-economic offences
Department of: Law
Created By: Prashant Pandey

2. Subject: Prevention of Corruption Act,
1988
Topic: Historical perspective and
significance of prevention of
corruption laws in India

3. Historical perspective
▰ India’s history is replete with countless anti-corruption
measures and subsequent punishments.
▰ The Rig Veda, a sacred Hindu text described as “the
oldest literary monument of the Indo-European races,”
discusses the prevention of corruption and extortion.
Vishnu and Manu punished people who accepted bribes
and punished corrupt government officials with property
forfeiture.

4. Content Slide
▰ Though British colonial rule saw its fair share of deceitful
practices, Britain still attempted to minimize such acts.
▰ During his tenure as governor general, Lord Cornwallis, in
contrast to Warren Hastings, implemented policies such as
increasing East India Company servants’ salaries,
prohibiting such servants from receiving presents, and
opening the doors for the creation of the Indian Civil
Service-all actions whose purposes were to decrease
corruption.

5. ▰ In the pre-independence period, the Indian penal Code
(IPC) was the main tool to combat corruption in public
life. The Code had a chapter on ‘Offences by Public
Servants’. Sections 161 to 165 provided the legal
framework to prosecute corrupt public servants. At that
time the need for a special law to deal with corruption
was not felt.

6. ▰ The Second World War created shortages which
gave opportunity to unscrupulous elements to exploit
the situation leading to large scale corruption in
public life. This situation continued even after the
war. The law makers concerned about this menace,
felt that drastic legislative measures need to be
taken. Hence the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947
was enacted to fight the evils of bribery and
corruption.

7. Prevention of Corruption Act 1947
▰ The Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947 did not
redefine nor expand the definition of offences related
to corruption in the already existing IPC.
▰ Similarly, it has adopted the same definition of ‘Public
Servant’ as in the IPC. However the law defined a
new offence ‘criminal misconduct in discharge of
official duty’ - for which enhanced punishment
(minimum one year to maximum seven years) was
stipulated.

8. ▰ In order to shift the burden of proof in certain cases to
the accused, it was provided that whenever it was
proved that a public servant had accepted any
gratification, it shall be presumed that the public
servant accepted such a gratification as a motive or
reward under sections 161,164 and 165 without the
permission of the authority competent to remove the
charged public servant.

9. ▰ The Act also provided that the statement by bribe-
giver would not subject him to prosecution.
▰ It was considered necessary to grant such immunity to
the bribe-giver, who might have been forced by
circumstances into giving a bribe. If this immunity was
not provided; all complainants would become liable for
punishment, which would deter them from giving
complaints against any public official who accepted
bribe.

10. ▰ The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 1952 brought
some changes in laws relating to corruption.
▰ The punishment specified under Section 165 of IPC
was enhanced to three years instead of existing two
years.
▰ Also a new Section 165A was inserted in the IPC,
which made abetting of offences, defined in Sections
161 and 165 of IPC.
▰ It was also stipulated that all corruption related
offences should be tried only by Special Judges.

11. Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988
▰ The prevention of Corruption Act 1988 consolidates
the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act,
1947, the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 1952 and
sections 161 to 165 of IPC.
▰ Besides, it has certain provisions intended to
effectively combat corruption among public servants.

12. Salient features of the Act
▰ The term ‘Public Servant’ is defined in the Act. The
definition is broader than what existed in the IPC.
▰ A new concept – ‘Public Duty’ is introduced in the
Act.
▰ Offences relating to corruption in the IPC have been
brought in Chapter 3 of the Act, and they have been
deleted from the Indian Penal Code.
▰ All cases under the Act are to be tried only by
Special Judges.

13. ▰ Proceedings of the court have to be held on a day-
to-day basis.
▰ Penalties prescribed for various offences are
enhanced.
▰ Criminal Procedure Code (for the purpose of this
Act only) to provide for expeditious trial (Section22
of the Act provides for amended Sections
243,309,317 and397 of Cr.P.C).

14. ▰ It has been stipulated that the no court shall stay the
proceedings under the Act on the grounds of any error
or irregularity in the sanction granted, unless in the
opinion of the court it has led to failure of justice.
▰ Other existing provisions regarding presumptions,
immunity to bribe giver, investigation by an officer of
the rank of Dy. S.P., access to bank records etc. have
been retained.

15. Statement of Object and Reasons
▰ In the statements of objects and reasons it is
expressly mentioned that the object of the Act is to
amend the existing anti-corruption laws with a view to
making them more effective by extending the scope
and ambit of the definition of “public servant” and to
bring to within its sweep each and every person who
held an office by virtue of which he was required to
perform any public duty.

16. Thank You !!