A little something...

Offering Bribe

But the flags, masks and candlelight vigils don’t shed any light on the small ways in which many common citizens contribute to corruption.

‘Petty’ bribery especially — whether it involves discreetly slipping a few notes to a policeman to avoid a fine, or paying ‘a little something’ to a passport official — has long been considered a necessary evil in this country.

Metrolife speaks to a few Bangaloreans to find out if they think this still holds true.
Although the masses love to talk about quashing corruption, many aren’t as ethical when it comes to getting things done at a personal level — especially in minor offences like traffic penalties.

Siji Malayil, an advocate, says, “People prefer not to go through the hassle of getting a ticket and going to court. They’d rather just pay Rs 100 or so to the cop and get off completely. It’s the same case when it comes to registering property. There is definitely an element of hypocrisy involved here.”

Each time a bribe is paid, explains Malayil, both the authorities as well as the bribing party should be held accountable.

“There are two aspects to every bribe: demand and payment,” he says.

Uday Shankar, also a lawyer, agrees that bribes are extremely common in India, but believes that citizens are now waking up to the fact that it is a social evil they need to do away with.

“In fact, the third point that Anna Hazare has raised includes the lower bureaucracy, and covers places like police stations and passport offices,” he says, adding that this will go a long way in curbing the phenomenon of bribing.

“Today, no bureaucratic officer is bothered; they know that if they ask someone for money, there is no one with whom a complaint can be registered against them. But hopefully, this will change,” he explains.

Shankar, however, does not believe that the common man is at any fault when it comes to paying bribes.

“The blame definitely rests with the authorities. Eighty per cent of bribery cases involve the common man being harassed for basic documents and items. Bribe money is
almost always taken by force; why else would someone pay money that they don’t want to?”

And will all the current furore succeed in putting an end to bribery? Hari, a company secretary, thinks that this is highly unlikely.

“The anti-corruption movement seems to focus more on large-scale scams, like the 2G scam. When it comes to paying small bribes for minor offences, my personal view is that it will have no effect whatsoever.”

There are others, however, who believe that the movement might have some effect in curbing bribery, although it may not put a complete stop to it. Siji Malayil belongs to this school of thought.

“I don’t think it can be eradicated completely; it would be unrealistic to
expect that. However, I do think it can be reduced. For instance, if the current bribe industry is Rs 500 crore, maybe we can bring it down to Rs 400 crore,” he says.