New Delhi: More than 7,000 corruption cases investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) remain pending trial in courts, including 379 that have been awaiting judgment for over two decades, according to the Central Vigilance Commission’s (CVC) latest annual report.
The report, made public recently, said that as of December 31, 2024, a total of 7,072 CBI corruption cases were under trial. Of these, 1,506 had been pending for less than three years, 791 for three to five years, and 2,115 for five to 10 years. Another 2,281 cases had been pending for 10 to 20 years, while 379 were stuck for more than 20 years.
“It is a matter of concern that 2,660 cases were pending for more than 10 years at the end of 2024,” the CVC noted.
In addition, 13,100 appeals and revisions filed either by the CBI or the accused were awaiting disposal in various high courts and the Supreme Court. Of these, 606 cases were pending for more than 20 years, nearly 3,000 for 10 to 15 years, and over 4,000 for five to 10 years.
During 2024, judgments were delivered in 644 cases, resulting in 392 convictions, 154 acquittals, 21 discharges, and 77 disposals on other grounds. The conviction rate stood at 69.14 per cent, slightly lower than 71.47 per cent recorded in 2023.
The CVC report said the CBI registered 807 cases in 2024, including 674 regular cases and 133 preliminary inquiries. These included 502 cases under the Prevention of Corruption Act, involving 859 public servants, among them 221 gazetted officers. The agency also laid 222 traps in bribery cases and registered 43 cases of disproportionate assets.
By the end of the year, 529 corruption cases were pending investigation, with 56 of them pending for more than five years. Overall, 832 cases remained under investigation, including 776 regular cases and 56 preliminary inquiries.
The CVC observed that investigations often exceeded the one-year time frame expected of the CBI due to factors such as excessive workload, inadequate manpower, delays in receiving responses to Letters Rogatory, and prolonged sanction procedures. It added that scrutiny of large volumes of records in bank fraud and economic offence cases, as well as difficulties in locating witnesses, also contributed to the delays.