Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday said that technological interventions would help raise the rate of convictions in corruption cases.
Talking to reporters after launching a web application which would enable complainants to report cases of corruption in Maharashtra, Fadnavis said that a photo upload feature in the application would serve as immediate evidence against culprits and help in their conviction.
Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Director Pravin Dixit said that as per legal opinion received, photographic evidence would be helpful for quick conviction. Fadnavis said that for a strong democracy, a transparent government is the need of the hour.
“There is a trust deficit in governance because there is no transparency and the focus of my government is to restore trust,” he said.
The CM said that additional district judges would be appointed as special judges for trial of ACB cases in order to expedite trial and conviction. The application which is available in English and Marathi verifies the complainant’s mobile phone number to prevent filing of frivolous complaints. Dixit said that last year the ACB arrested more than 1,600 corrupt public officials and their mediators. It would leave no stone unturned to reach the common man by using the latest technology available, he said.
The application backend is connected to all ACB units. The web application, developed by Bombay Coding Company, will help people from all over Maharashtra to report cases of corruption against any public servant. It is accessible on any phone, tablet, desktop or laptop that has an Internet connection. Speaking on the occasion, Dixit said “ACB in 2014 has arrested over 1,600 corrupt public officials and their mediators and is leaving no stone unturned to reach the common man by aptly tapping the latest available technology.
“The idea is to reach out to the general public in every possible way to encourage and motivate them to report corrupt activities.” The app simplifies the procedure for registering a corruption complaint by making the complaint form available in a single click on phones/computers, which the ACB hopes will encourage youngsters to be proactive about the issue, officials said. Along with their complaint, users can also upload audio-visual evidence.
There is also a “how it works” page describing the entire procedure of registering a complaint. The app has a direct link to the 1064 toll-free number of ACB for those who want to register a complaint by making a phone call. Nimisha Gaurishankar, Co-founder of Bombay Coding Company, stated, “good software is not just games and social networks, but it’s also for solving real problems of people.
“We strongly support the anti-corruption movement and hope this application in some way helps in reducing the corruption plaguing our public offices.” This project has received support from Public Concern for Governance Trust, an NGO that strives for good, efficient and transparent governance, the ACB said.
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