The traditional transfer, dismissal and compulsory retirement of corrupt public servants is ‘insufficient’ to curb corruption, says Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) claiming approach like this can ‘encourage’ corruption instead.

Corrupt public servants must be brought to proper trial to ensure exemplary punishment in accordance with legal proceedings, the Berlin-based anti-graft platform said Monday.

Officials from NBR and the police facing corruption allegations have been transferred or forced into retirement.

Describing administrative actions as 'promising', TIB Executive Director Dr Iftekharuzzaman said that the system becomes normalised to limit disciplinary actions such as transfer, dismissal, or retirement for corrupt government employees.

“However, such measures fall short in effectively ensuring accountability and deterring corruption. Crimes like corruption can spread to other officials and beyond if punishment is limited to transfers alone. Public servants do not have to face the law if they involve in corruption— in fact the widespread acceptance of this idea can further encourage corruption,” he said

Dr Zaman pointed out that amendments relaxing provisions in the Government Service (Discipline & Appeal) Rules over time have effectively provided a protective shield.

“It is a blatant violation of the Constitution to shield public servants from liability for corruption through mere divisional actions. According to Article 27 of the Constitution, all citizens are equal before the law. Limiting punishment for public servants accused of corruption to measures like transfer, dismissal, or retirement is the indication of discrimination against people of different professions and classes,” he said.

TIB thinks that action works as the pre-dominant factor when it comes to the spread of corruption across various areas within the government. Dr Zaman demanded that officials accused of corruption face investigation and trial through the standard legal processes applied to all citizens. Citing that there is no way to ignore the political responsibilities regarding the glaring examples of the recent corruption of public servants, Dr. Iftekharuzzaman said.

“Some leaders of the ruling party (Awami League) acknowledged that they have institutionalised corruption, many attempting to shift blame solely onto government employees. However, it cannot be denied that high-level corruption often involves political patronage and collusion,” he said.

TIB further mentioned that the failure to effectively combat corruption is partly due to political leaders’ avoidance of responsibilities for their influence over key institutions.

“Moving beyond mere rhetoric of a zero-tolerance policy against corruption, political leadership must accept responsibility and enforce genuine measures to root out corruption. This requires a shift from lip service to substantial actions that rebuild public trust and uphold ethical governance standards,” added the statement.