JAMMU: Former Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik seems to have triggered panic button in the Union Territory Civil Secretariat by repeating the allegation of corruption in insurance deal for government employees, pensioners and journos by a reputed corporate house of the country. The proverb goes that fear is the key which opens the wallets of the rich. In the instant case, the reiteration of the charge has pushed guilty to seek remedial measures after having temporarily succeeded in getting the file archived under the carpet. It is not that the present gubernatorial dispensation is not sensitive towards corruption but, perhaps, it is pursuing zero tolerance against graft in letter and spirit. It is different that people may succeed for the time being in keeping heat to remain away due to murky sections of the bureaucracy.
Though not named yet the people have some inkling about the officer involved in pushing the file of Reliance General Insurance. The deal was almost through but for the speed-breaker put by Malik, who claims to have been hinted at getting Rs 150 crore for approval. Such was the tempo of the proposal that the nitty-gritty and formats for insurance cover had been set in motion and some of the employees had even contributed their part of premiums.
The timely intervention by the Raj Bhawan at that point of time stalled a move, which was not fair as its operation was based on ‘commission’, a decent and decorative term for corruption. Who doesn’t know about the malady of corruption in Jammu and Kashmir? In 2005, Transparency International, an international NGO, had placed J&K at number two after Bihar in the list of most corrupt states of the country. This was even confirmed by the then State Accountability Commission, which had registered over 100 complaints in a short span of one month.
In a corrupt set up, as murky as Dal Lake due to manmade disastrous pollution, hushing up of cases was a common phenomenon. Taking advantage of this culture, the mover of the Reliance General Insurance file has thus far succeeded in putting the case on the backburner. But the bureaucrat has not succeeded in getting the case hushed up despite his clout and contacts in the administration-both in J&K capitals and the national capital of New Delhi. Guilt, that he is involved and his involvement is known to the man on the street must be hurting the bureaucrat. Reiteration of charges by the former and the last Governor of the erstwhile state must have sagged the morale of the officer involved and his huge support base.
What next? This is a question bothering the people and haunting the guilty. Satya Pal Malik did stall the move but could not name and shame the offender, least to say get him booked for committing a crime. We won’t ask why. We won’t also ask why the successor to Malik and the first Lieutenant Governor of the newly carved out Union Territory Girish Chander Murmu failed in doing the job. The bureaucrat was not incognito despite not being named. He was removed from the post that enabled him to move the proposal. He had got exposed the day Satya Pal Malik took off the lid from the can of worms. The bureaucrat, though moved, got the case wrapped notwithstanding the then Governor claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had been taken into confidence.
There is someone, somewhere doing something to shield J&K’s corrupt Babu but that someone cannot be stronger enough than Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha-a man of action-to dig out the truth. Governor Malik’s attributions cannot be dismissed as his usual habit of raising controversies, as he did just hours before leveling charges of corruption against the Goa Chief Minister.
Let the fair, impartial and time-bound probe on Reliance General Insurance ‘file’ bring out the truth. The ball is in the Raj Bhawan’s court!