Whistle Blowers

Protection Act

Introduction
Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2011is an Act of
the Parliament of India which provides a mechanism to
investigate alleged corruption and misuse of power by
public servants and also protect anyone who exposes
alleged wrongdoing in government bodies, projects and
offices.
The wrongdoing might take the form of fraud, corruption
or mismanagement.
The Act will also ensure punishment for false or frivolous
complaints.

Intent of the Act

An Act to establish a mechanism to
receive complaints relating to disclosure on any allegation of
corruption or
willful misuse of power or
willful misuse of discretion against any public servant and
to inquire or cause an inquiry into such disclosure and
to provide adequate safeguards against victimization of the
person making such complaint and for matters connected
therewith and incidental thereto.

Salient Features of the Act

The Act seeks to protect whistle blowers, i.e. persons
making a public interest disclosure related to an act of
corruption, misuse of power, or criminal offense by a
public servant.
Any public servant or any other person including a nongovernmental organization may make such a disclosure
to the Central or State Vigilance Commission.
Every complaint has to include the identity of the
complainant.

Salient Features of the Act

The Vigilance Commission shall not disclose the identity
of the complainant except to the head of the
department if he deems it necessary.
The Act penalizes any person who has disclosed the
identity of the complainant.
The Act prescribes penalties for knowingly making false
complaints.

Legislative Progress
In June 2011, a parliamentary panel recommended that

ministers,
the higher judiciary,
security organisations,
defence and intelligence forces and
regulatory authorities

be brought under the whistleblowers' protection bill to

check corruption and the willful misuse of power.
The Bill was finally approved on 9 May 2014.

Analysis of the Legislation

According to Indian law reports, the bill has faced
considerable criticism because its jurisdiction is
restricted to the government sector and encompasses
only those who are working for the Government of India
or its agencies
it does not cover the state-government employees.

Analysis of the Legislation

The proposed law has neither provisions to encourage
whistleblowing (financial incentives), nor deals with
corporate whistle-blowers.
It does not extend its jurisdiction to the private sector (a
strange omission, after the fraud atSatyam).
TheDirectorate of Income Tax Intelligence and Criminal
Investigationis one of the only agencies empowered for
whistle- blower protection.

Analysis of the Legislation

The bill aims to balance the need to protect honest
officials from harassment with protecting persons
making a public-interest disclosure.
It outlines sanctions for false complaints.
It does not
complainant

provide

penalty

for

attacking

Central Vigilance Commission

Central
Vigilance
apexIndiangovernmental
governmental corruption.

Commission(CVC)
body created in 1964

is
an
to address

It has the status of an autonomous body, free of control from any

executive authority, charged with monitoring all vigilanceactivity
under the CentralGovernment of India, advising various authorities in
central Government organizations in planning, executing, reviewing
and reforming their vigilance work.
It was set up by theGovernment of Indiain February, 1964 on the
recommendations of theCommittee on Prevention of Corruption to
advise and guide Central Government agencies in the field of vigilance

Central Vigilance Commission

The Annual Report of the CVC not only gives the details
of the work done by it but also brings out the system
failures which leads to corruption in various
Departments/Organisations,
system
improvements,
various preventive measures and cases in which the
Commission's advises were ignored.

False Claims Act

TheFalse Claims Act(also called the "Lincoln Law") is
an Americanfederal lawthat imposes liability on persons
and
companies
(typicallyfederal
contractors)
whodefraudgovernmental programs.
It is the federal Governments primarylitigationtool in
combating fraud against the Government.
The law includes aqui tam provision that allows people who
are not affiliated with the government, called "relators"
under the law, to fileactionson behalf of the government.

False Claims Act

Persons filing under the Act stand to receive a portion
(usually
about
1525
percent)
of
any
recovereddamages.
Claims under the law have typically involved health
care, military, or other government spending programs.
The government recovered $38.9 billion under the False
Claims Act between 1987 and 2013 and of this amount,
$27.2 billion or 70% was from qui tam cases brought by
relators.