You are the CEO of Zilla Panchayat. A Gram Panchayat Secretary has been assaulted by Gram Panchayat member. The member is an influential figure in the Tehsil and is very close to the local MLA. The Panchayat Secretary is severely injured and is hospitalised. He was assaulted after being caught red handed while taking bribe from a poor woman in the office. The member has the support of villagers and MLA. All these incidences have been brought to your notice by the Block Development Officer.
What will you do in this situation?
In this situation, ethical dilemma arises as to take action against whom:
- Panchayat member who had ruthlessly beaten Panchayat Secretary due to latter accepting bribe
- Panchayat Secretary who had indulged in corruption
Here it is important to note the following:
- Panchayat Secretary was unethical in firstly accepting/demanding bribe.
- However, this should not allow any person to take law in his own hands. Here, panchayat member with almost mob support (villagers back him, though they themselves did not assault) has taken law in his hands, which is also unethical. He could have taken help of law- contacted Vigilance department and laid a trap to catch him red-handed again, or lodged FIR in police station.
Therefore, I will take the following steps:
- First I will conduct an enquiry myself with help of other Parishad members into incident, as BDO has just informed me.
- If I find that the incident is true and Panchayat Secretary is in hospital, I’ll extend all treatment support to him. Also, I’ll talk to the poor woman and tell her to lodge FIR against Secretary if he demanded bribe. Law will take its course here.
- Also, I’ll ask Police to investigate into Panchayat Member’s actions and proceed accordingly with relevant sections of law he has violated. In this way, I will be able to solve the issue in unbiased way and uphold my values of non-partisanship, empathy, integrity and going by law.
