Cash-for-duty video of Home Guard jawans goes viral

In a video footage gone viral, nearly a dozen Home Guard jawans have accused the department officials of giving them work only after taking cash and have threatened to commit suicide if their gripes are not resolved.
The video footage pertained to the jawans of Bikaner, Sriganganagar, Hanumangarh and Churu districts of the Bikaner division.
They have also appealed to both the Union and the state governments, and their functionaries including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to resolve their grievances by March 31, failing which, they said, they would commit suicide.
"The officers have their agents who extract money for them from jawans for assigning duties," they are heard saying in the videos.

"There are several home guards like us who have not got duty for months as they did not pay the bribe. Family life is miserable and we are being forced to commit suicide," alleged Havildar Pokar Ram in the video.
Another jawan Subhash Bishnoi says, "I was recruited in 2002 and the cash for assigning duties is going on since then. The agents demand Rs 5,000 to Rs 6,000 for securing duty for us."

Pokar Ram and Bisnoi are not alone, Balkar Singh too have voiced similar complaints in a video which has gone viral on various social media.
The allegations sound all the more credible as they have surfaced in the wake of Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of the Rajasthan police trapping incharge commander Veer Singh while taking Rs 3,000 bribe for assigning duty to Home Guard jawan Ishar Ram.

"We have been receiving complaints from jawans against the officials demanding bribe for assigning them duties following which we had taken action," said ACB Additional SP Rajendra Singh.
Commandant Devkinandan Swami refuted the allegations saying the jawans and officers are assigned duties on rotation basis on requirement.
"We have informed jawans and officers to report their problem, if any. We have not received any written complaint from any jawan against any officer demanding bribe for assigning duty," said Swami.
"We will take strict action, if any such complaint is lodged," he said adding that the report of a platoon commander caught accepting bribe has been sent to the head office for further action.