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Introduction

The vision of Viksit Bharat, a developed India, relies on clean governance. Bureaucratic rent seeking and slow legal processes weaken policy execution, erode public trust, and hinder India’s progress toward transparent, efficient, and inclusive development.

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How Bureaucratic ‘Rent-Seeking’ Impedes India’s Development Goals

• Erodes Investor Confidence: Bribe demands at every stage of business operations—from Customs to local permits  discourage domestic and foreign investors, slowing industrial growth.
• Distorts Resource Allocation: Projects are awarded based on bribery, not merit, leading to inefficiency, inflated costs, and poor-quality infrastructure.
• Weakens Social Welfare Delivery: Leakages in subsidy schemes and welfare programs prevent benefits from reaching the poor, perpetuating inequality.
• Breeds Administrative Inefficiency: Rent-seeking diverts bureaucratic focus from service delivery to personal enrichment, eroding institutional trust.
  Eg: The Bengaluru case of bribery for basic services like FIR registration and death certificates reflects systemic decay.

How Slow Legal Processes Impede India’s Development Goals

• Delayed Justice Undermines Deterrence: Corruption cases dragging for decades embolden offenders, reducing fear of accountability.
• Clogs Economic Governance: Lengthy trials delay infrastructure, land, and environmental approvals, affecting project timelines and capital flow.
• Reduces Bureaucratic Efficiency: Honest officers work cautiously to avoid false accusations, while corrupt ones exploit legal loopholes and procedural delays.
• Erodes Public Trust in Institutions: Prolonged trials and low conviction rates weaken citizens’ faith in rule of law and democratic governance.

Pragmatic Administrative Reforms for Transparency and Accountability

• Simplify Regulatory Frameworks: Streamline procedures for land, licensing, and Customs to reduce human discretion and rent-seeking.
  Eg: Use of digital single-window clearance systems under “Ease of Doing Business” can reduce face-to-face corruption.
• Periodic Asset and Income Audits: Conduct mandatory 10-year audits of bureaucrats’ assets, with automatic investigation triggers for unexplained wealth.
• Strengthen Whistleblower and Vigilance Mechanisms: Empower internal vigilance units with autonomy and protect whistleblowers from retaliation.
• Performance-Linked Accountability: Link promotions and incentives to transparent service delivery metrics and citizen feedback.

Pragmatic Legal Reforms for Transparency and Accountability

• Fast-Track Corruption Courts: Establish special anti-corruption courts to ensure time-bound trials and reduce pendency.
  Eg: Lokayukta courts in Karnataka have demonstrated faster case resolution and deterrence impact.
• Automatic Sanction Mechanism: Amend laws to remove the requirement of prior government approval for prosecuting senior officials in corruption cases.
• Asset Forfeiture and Transparency Laws: Enforce stricter asset disclosure norms for public servants and empower agencies to seize disproportionate assets.
• Digitisation of Judicial Processes: Use e-courts and AI-based tracking to reduce procedural delays and ensure transparency in case management.

Conclusion

A Viksit Bharat demands not only economic acceleration but institutional purification. Eliminating bureaucratic rent seeking and judicial inefficiency will create an ecosystem of trust, fairness, and innovation, transforming governance into a transparent enabler of India’s long-term social and economic transformation.

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