Union Defence Minister A.K. Antony has at last ordered a CBI probe into explosion graft allegations made by the army chief, General V.K. Singh. What is surprising is that Antony took action after General V.K. Singh revealed the fact to the media that a retired military officer had offered a bribe of Rs. 14 crore to clear the purchase of 600 military vehicles. Antony should have acted as soon as he got clued up on it by the General. The UPA government is facing a barrage of corruption charges—Coalgate among the latest. The question is why the General spoke up only on the eve of his retirement. There was recently an unseemly controversy over his date of birth. Besides, he made only an oral complaint. He did not adopt the proper procedure to start action against the offending lobbyist. Defence Minister Antony says that the General was not keen on pursuing the matter.
Tackling corruption is an urgent task as Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee emphasised in his budget. But delay in official action has been slowing down the job. The alleged crooked military deal should have been investigated long ago. Exemplary action should have been taken already against the offender. Recommendations for action to eliminate kickbacks in arms deals have so far been shelved. The Coal scandal also exposed official procrastination. Antony says that all his life he has been committed to fighting corruption. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is known as Mr. Clean in Indian politics. But has he been proactive in speeding up clean-ups? Corruption is rampant in land, mining, the social sector and government procurement. No action has yet been taken to seize black money stashed away in foreign banks. Law breakers, even those in high places should be brought to book. Personal integrity is not enough unless it produces the right action.