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Chandigarh: Constable awarded four years in jail in ₹3,000 graft case
The Chandigarh Police constable was arrested from the district courts in April 2014 while accepting the bribe from an assault accused
Comparing corruption to cancer, which if not detected in time will lead to disastrous consequences, a CBI court on Friday awarded four-year jail to a Chandigarh Police constable for accepting ₹3,000 bribe in 2014.
The constable, Balraj Singh, was posted as naib court at the Sector 43 district courts when he was arrested on graft charges in April 2014.
“The convict does not deserve the leniency prayed for by him and the same cannot be considered, as the convict was a police official working in the court and well versed with the outcome of his actions. Everyday he used to see the functions of the court and was well aware that all those who do wrong are punished by the courts,” ruled the court of special CBI judge Jagjit Singh, while pronouncing the quantum of sentence on Friday.
“Corruption among public servants has always existed in one form or the other, although its shapes, dimensions, textures and shades have been changing from time to time and place to place. At one time, bribe was paid for getting wrong things done, but now bribe is paid for getting right things done at the right time,” the court added.
On corruption in society, the court said, “…..many of us think that it is unavoidable. Many see it as normal and not immoral. That is disturbing. The corrupt have turned and twisted the system to suit them, and have thrived, many have prospered. Corruption is social evil, which has eroded the applicability of justness and fairness in society.”
Had offered assault accused help in getting bail
The CBI had booked Balraj under the Prevention Of Corruption Act after he was caught accepting ₹3,000 as bribe from an assault accused.
The complainant, Rohani, alias Romy, a resident of Milk Colony, Dhanas, had approached the bureau on April 4, 2014, alleging that Balraj had demanded ₹5,000 to help him get bail in an assault case registered at the Sector 11 police station. Later, the deal was finalised at ₹3,000.
Balraj was arrested from the corridor outside courtroom number 14 as the money exchanged hands.
The court had later issued non-bailable warrants against Rohani after he stopped appearing before the court.
Cops on the other side of law
March 7, 2020: A CBI court sentenced a Chandigarh traffic police head constable Dalbir Singh to four-year jail in a 2014 graft case. Singh was convicted of taking ₹1,500 bribe
February 19, 2020: A former sub-inspector of Chandigarh police, Balbir Singh, was awarded four years in jail for accepting ₹35,000 bribe in 2015
December 4, 2019: A court awarded four-year jail to Davinder Kumar, an assistant sub-inspector of Chandigarh Police, for accepting ₹3,500 in bribe in May 2013
November 27, 2019: A CBI court sent a former UT Police sub-inspector, Kulwaranjit Singh Cheema, to jail for four years, and his aide, Subhash Chand Dhiman, to three years in a 2012 graft case
August 10, 2018: Deshraj Singh, a 2008-batch Indian Police Service officer, was sentenced to a three-year jail term by a CBI court. Then posted as the superintendent of police (SP, City), with the additional charge of SP (Headquarters), Deshraj was arrested from his Sector-23 house on October 18, 2012, while taking ₹1 lakh as bribe from a junior officer for getting him the clean chit in two departmental inquiries.
