Govt has dealt with corruption severely after previous dispensations' lax attitude: PM

Prime minister Narendra Modi on Monday attacked the previous dispensations for their apparent lax attitude towards dealing with corruption and said that it was only after 2014, when the BJP-led dispensation came to power, that the malaise was dealt with severely.

Addressing a gathering while inaugurating the diamond jubilee celebrations of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Modi said that unfortunately India got a legacy of corruption at the time of Independence and lamented the fact that instead of removing it, "some people kept nourishing this malady".

He recalled the "scams and the prevailing sense of impunity just a decade ago, when the UPA dispensation was in power".

"This situation led to the destruction of the system and an atmosphere of policy paralysis brought the development to stand still," he said.

After 2014, the prime minister reiterated that the priority of the government was to instill faith in the system and for this, the government started taking action against black money and benami property in mission mode and started inflicting damage on the corrupt as well as the reasons behind the corruption.

He recalled bringing transparency in the processes of issuing government tenders and also highlighted the difference in 2G and 5G spectrum allocations.

Modi emphasised that the GeM (Government eMarketplace) portal has been established to ensure transparency in making purchases in every department of the central government.

"Today there is no dearth of political will to take action against corruption in the country," the prime minister said.

He asked the officers to take action without hesitation against the corrupt, however powerful.

Modi asked them not to be deterred by the history of the power of the corrupt and the ecosystem created by them to tarnish the investigative agencies.

"These people will keep distracting you, but you have to focus on your work. No corrupt person should be spared. There should be no laxity in our efforts. This is the wish of the country, this is the wish of the countrymen. The country, law and constitution are with you," the prime minister told the gathering of top police and intelligence officials.

"Corruption is not an ordinary crime, it snatches the rights of the poor, it begets many other crimes, corruption is the biggest obstacle in the path of justice and democracy," he said.

The prime minister, on the occasion, praised the premier investigative agency, observing that "through their work and skills, CBI has instilled trust among the common citizens of the country".

"A developed India is not possible without professional and efficient institutions," he added.

"The CBI's chief responsibility is to rid the country of corruption," the prime minister said.

During the programme, an investiture ceremony for recipients of the President's Police Medal for Distinguished Service and Gold Medal for Best Investigating Officers of CBI was also held wherein the prime minister conferred medals to the awardees.

He also inaugurated the newly constructed office complexes of CBI at Shillong, Pune and Nagpur and also launched the Twitter handle of CBI.