Maharashtra ACB chalks out plans to better conviction rate

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra anti-corruption bureau (ACB), under pressure to improve its conviction rate, will soon implement a slew of measures aimed at achieving this.

MUMBAI: The Maharashtra anti-corruption bureau (ACB), under pressure to improve its conviction rate, will soon implement a slew of measures aimed at achieving this. The ACB’s conviction rate in 2016 is 23%; of the 487 cases that went to trial, 371 resulted in acquittals and only 116 in convictions. Worse still, the ACB’s conviction rate in Mumbai is a paltry 3%.

HT Image

Vivek Phansalkar, additional director general of police, Maharashtra ACB, confirmed that all eight ranges of the bureau — in Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Nashik, Nagpur, Amravati, Aurangabad and Nanded – are chalking out an action plan to improve the conviction rate, which they will submit to him. The Mumbai ACB, which has the worst conviction rate of all eight ranges, has already submitted its list of measures.

Phansalkar told HT, “It is a matter of serious concern. For us, it is a top priority.”

A senior ACB officer, who did not wish to be named, said, “We are training our officers on how to make a watertight case and improve the conviction rate. We are also taking help from legal experts for this. All our officials have been told to read all court orders and find out why the accused were acquitted.”

Some officers rued that in some cases, the accused are let off on technicalities or because certain pieces of evidence, such as audio recordings, are not considered evidence.

The officer added, “Another issue is the use of the same panchas (witnesses) in many cases. They are termed habitual witnesses. Then there is the issue of judges or the defence questioning the qualification and competency of investigating officers, including those from forensic labs. Also, most cases that remain pending for a long time in court end in acquittals.”