A sentence of thirteen years rigorous imprisonment and an aggregate fine of Rs 100 crore have been awarded to Abdul Karim Telgi, prime accused in the multi-crore stamp paper scam. On the face of it, it does seem that justice has been done. The stamp paper scamster, who defrauded the Indian exchequer of thousands of crores of rupees has been awarded a tough punishment; the fine imposed on him is said to be the heaviest to be imposed by the Indian judiciary. However, it is very likely that he will not have to face the sting of the sentence awarded to him. Telgi is said to be seriously ill and is unlikely to survive long enough to serve 13 years in jail. As for the fine, his lawyer has said that his client is not in a position to pay the fine as his assets have been seized. He could opt instead to serve an additional three years. This will take his jail term to 16 years, which in all likelihood he will not live to serve. Besides Telgi, 42 others have been awarded sentences ranging from 1-6 years of imprisonment and fines of Rs 5 lakh each.

Justice in the stamp paper scam remains an unfinished business. Several accused might have been awarded hefty sentences but this by itself does not amount to justice as the big fish seem to have gotten away. Several top cops, including former Mumbai Police Commissioner R S Sharma, have been let off on the grounds of lack of evidence.  Telgi could not have run such a huge racket, worth crores of rupees and spread out across several states without the support of people in positions of power. Names of several prominent politicians, bureaucrats and police surfaced during the probe. Investigations into the links of these people with the stamp paper scam were not carried out satisfactorily. In fact, investigators were never given complete freedom to probe the scam.
Telgi was the visible face of the scam, among the few in the racket who got caught. There are hundreds of others who brazenly violated the law and benefited from the scam, yet they are walking free.  Telgi’s conviction and sentencing therefore does not provide a sense of satisfaction that justice has been done. The others behind the scam need to be punished too, for justice to be done.