Faced with frequent incidents of witnesses turning hostile during the trial and giving false testimony to help corrupt government officials, the Directorate of Vigilance of Odisha has started initiating criminal proceedings against complaints and witnesses retracting their statements.
“In the last two years, 45 perjury (obstruction of justice) cases have been initiated by Odisha Vigilance against complainants and witnesses turning hostile during the trial. Similarly, disciplinary authorities have been approached to initiate departmental action against official (government) witnesses for giving false testimony to help the corrupt accused government officials at the time of trial,” said Yashwant Jethwa, Vigilance Director.
Upendra Bhanja Naik, an Assistant Engineer in Bargarh district, was recently dismissed for providing false evidence during trial.
Odisha government has set up 21 independent vigilance courts throughout the State to exclusively try corruption cases. According to Vigilance Directorate, the government has recently sanctioned posts of prosecution liaison officers in all Vigilance Courts for closely monitoring trial of vigilance cases.
“All acquitted vigilance cases are being analysed threadbare and corrective actions initiated. Rewards for successful prosecution and responsibilities for wilful lacunae in investigation and prosecution are being fixed,” said Mr. Jethwa.
“Such strong actions have helped Odisha Vigilance ensure a high conviction rate in corruption cases. In 2022, the overall conviction rate in vigilance cases was around 50% and the conviction rate in disproportionate asset (DA) cases was a significantly higher 77%, ranking Odisha Vigilance among top-performing States with regard to conviction in DA cases,” he pointed out.
