Abstract
Bribery is described as the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of something valued in order to influence the behaviour of a public official or other person in charge of a public or legal obligation. Bribery is described as the “corrupt solicitation, acceptance, or transfer of value in exchange for official action.”Bribery does not include gifts of money or other valuable commodities that are normally available on an equal basis to everyone and are not utilised for dishonest purposes.
Offering a discount or a refund to all buyers is lawful and does not constitute bribery. It is lawful, for example, for an employee of a Public Utilities Commission involved in electric rate regulation to take a rebate on electric service that lowers their cost for power if the discount is offered to other residential electric customers. Giving a discount to that employee particularly to convince them to look favourably on the electric utility’s rate increase applications, on the other hand, would be called bribery.
Keywords
Bribery, offering, IPC, 171b, International monitory fund(IMF)
Introduction
Bribery was described by Black Law’s Dictionary as “the offering, giving, receiving, or soliciting of any item of value in order to influence the actions of an official or other person in charge of a public or legal duty.”[1]
Merriam Webster’s Dictionary defines a bribe as “money or favour given or promised in order to influence the judgement or conduct of a person in a position of trust.”[2]
As a result, when a public official receives anything from a person, such as money, a gift, property, or anything else, in order to either fulfil or not execute his job, he is engaging in bribery.
Bribery is based on the ‘quid pro quo’ concept, which implies something for something. It is giving in order to obtain something in return.
For example, if two persons are arrested for drunken driving, they may pay a sum of money to a public official in order to avoid going to jail.
In the preceding example, the two persons offered money to the public official in order to avoid incarceration, and thus offered something in order to obtain something. This is the idea behind bribery.
Bribery in India[3]
Bribery is a well-known practise in India. Many residents in the country are not afraid of the standing traffic cops. They openly disobey the law since they know the cops will abandon them and not charge them if they provide a little bribe to these officers.
This is the state of bribery in India, despite the fact that bribery is prohibited in India and there are laws against it that may be used to penalise those who engage in it.
Almost every day, people are spotted proposing bribes to government authorities, especially those driving recklessly and disobeying traffic regulations such as not wearing a helmet or seat belts.
Laws against bribery in India
Section 171B of the Act states,[4]
“(1) Whoever – (i) gives a gratification to any person with the intent of inducing him or any other person to exercise any electoral right or rewarding any person for having exercised any such right; or (ii) accepts any gratification as a reward for exercising any such right or inducing or attempting to induce any other person to exercise any such right; commits bribery: Provided that a declaration of public interest is made.”
(2) A person who offers or agrees to give satisfaction, or offers or strives to get gratification, is regarded to give gratification.
(3) A person who obtains, agrees to accept, or attempts to obtain a gratification is deemed to accept it, and a person who accepts a gratification as a motive for doing something he does not intend to do, or as a reward for doing something he has not done, is deemed to have accepted the gratification as a reward.” This Section describes the crime of bribery as well as the people who accept and provide bribes.
According to Section 169 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860[5], a public officer who improperly bids for any property faces imprisonment for up to two years, a fine, or both.
According to Section 409 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860[6], a public officer is guilty of criminal breach of trust if he is entrusted with any property or control over the property and transforms such property for his own benefit. A violation of Section 409 is punishable by life imprisonment or imprisonment for up to ten years.
Bribery can be prosecuted under all of these sections of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. Aside from this, a person can be penalised in India for bribery under the following laws:
- Section of the Income Tax Act of 1961 dealing with prosecution
- The 1988 Prevention of Corruption Act
- Money Laundering Prevention Act of 2002
Since 2005, India has been a signatory to the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (ratified in 2011). The Convention addresses a wide range of corruption protests and also suggests some preventative measures.
Cases related to bribery in India[7]
- Abhishek Verma arms deals scandal[8]
In 1997, at the age of 28, he became the world’s youngest billionaire. He was involved in a variety of commercial ventures, including BSNL and FMCG businesses.
In 2006, he was charged with taking $200 million in bribes as part of a military transaction involving the acquisition of six Scorpene class submarines. He was detained in 2012 after the CBI searched his home and filed money laundering and corruption charges against him.
In 2013, he was also accused of bribery surpassing E50 million in the AgustaWestland VVIP helicopter bribery scandal.
- Sachin Vaze and Param Bir Singh – Vazegate Scandal[9]
Following the Mukesh Ambani bomb alert case in March 2021, the NIA discovered, after taking charge of the Mumbai Police investigation, that an officer, Sachin Vaze, and Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh had played a role in the entire instance of bomb preparation. param Bir Singh, who was later moved, sent a letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray stating that state home minister Anil Deshmukh had demanded that he collect Rs 100 crore on a regular basis.
- Harshad Mehta – Securities Scam[10]
This is the situation in 1992. Harshad Mehta, an Indian stockbroker, controlled stocks by illegally obtaining funds from many banks using forged bank receipts.
He engaged in a pattern of deception that included major banks such as the State Bank of India (SBI) and the National Housing Bank (NHB). Mehta was allegedly involved in a massive stock control scheme financed by worthless bank receipts, which his business facilitated for “prepared forward” transfers between banks.
He was jailed by the Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court in a monetary outrage valued at Rs 10,000 crore that happened on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). The incident revealed provisions in the Indian financial system and the BSE’s trading structure.
Cases related to bribery outside India
- Daimler case[11]
Daimler was accused with breaking US bribery rules. It was reported that it displayed millions of dollars and many presents to foreign authorities in exchange for completing commercial transactions.
Between 1998 and 2008, the business participated in bribery in about 22 nations, including Russia, Nigeria, and Iraq.
After being detected, the corporation was ordered by the US Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission to pay around $185 million to resolve the accusations.
- Kellogg Brown and Root case[12]
The engineering firm was fined $402 million, and the former CEO was sentenced to 30 months in jail.
In order to obtain a $6 billion deal, the business paid $180 million in bribes to Nigerian officials. Between 1994 and 2004, the business admits to engaging in bribery in order to get four contracts.
Conclusion[13]
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the world wastes up to $2 trillion in corruption, equal to 2% of global GDP. Bribery must be eliminated as soon as possible.
Almost every government is dealing with it and is enacting legislation to put a stop to it. It has become a part of society, and with so many layers of government and individuals, particularly in countries like India, it has become a major issue that is nearly hard to recognise and regulate.
To put an end to this practise, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 16 aims to significantly eliminate corruption and bribery in all forms as part of a worldwide effort to ensure peace, justice, and strong institutions.
As a result, every government should enact tough rules to minimise and finally eliminate the practise of bribery. Every citizen of the country should be aware of this practise and desist from utilising it to get access to public services.
This article is written by Piuli Banerjee, New law college Bharati Vidyapeeth, Pune, 2nd year student(5year B.A.LL.B) during her internship at LeDroit India.
[1] https://thelawdictionary.org/bribery/
[2] https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bribery
[3] https://www.lawinsider.in/columns/what-is-bribery-the-cases-in-india-involving-bribery
[4] https://indiankanoon.org/doc/298814/
[5] https://indiankanoon.org/doc/477003/
[6] https://indiankanoon.org/doc/1326844/
[7] https://www.lawinsider.in/columns/what-is-bribery-the-cases-in-india-involving-bribery
[8] https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/court-discharges-arms-dealer-abhishek-verma-in-graft-case/articleshow/58380458.cms
[9] https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/extortion-case-police-file-charge-sheet-against-param-bir-singh-sachin-vaze-101638642737708.html
[10] https://www.cnbctv18.com/market/scam-1992-harshad-mehta-scam-explained-7417101.htm
[11] https://www.lexisnexis.com/community/casebrief/p/casebrief-daimler-ag-v-bauman
[12] https://www.lexisnexis.com/community/casebrief/p/casebrief-in-re-kellogg-brown-root-inc
[13] https://www.lawinsider.in/columns/what-is-bribery-the-cases-in-india-involving-bribery
