Pune: Maharashtra once again recorded the highest number of corruption cases in India in 2024, nearly twice that of Tamil Nadu, which was in second place.The 2024 National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data, released on Wednesday, showed that Maharashtra registered 721 corruption cases in 2024, marginally lower than the previous year’s 812. The state has topped the list since at least 2014, when it had reported 1,316 cases of corruption. In 2022, Maharashtra reported 749 cases, while there were 773 in 2021 and 664 in 2020.Sanjeev Kumar Singhal, director general of police of the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), told TOI that the high number of cases was due to several factors, including an easier complaint mechanism, extensive reach of ACB across the state, and the large population under its jurisdiction compared to other states.Some experts said the high number could indicate stricter enforcement and proactive anti-corruption action compared to other states, where similar offences may go under-reported or action may not be pursued aggressively. However, activists pointed out that irrespective of what the police claimed to counter the data, the fact remained that Maharashtra recorded the highest number of corruption cases for several years in a row.“The irony is that only a few of these corrupt people caught by the ACB face any kind of action,” said activist Anjali Damania.She added that the extent of corruption could be assessed from the fact that officers, even those from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are caught taking bribes these days.Vihar Dhurve, another activist, said, “It was Mumbai and Maharashtra from which the highest funds were raised through electoral bonds. Not just the lower rank, but senior most officials are also involved in corruption.”According to another dataset released by the Anti-Corruption Bureau in 2025, Nashik, with 154 offences of corruption in 2024, was the worst among the regions in the state. Pune region followed with 149 cases.Sanjeev Kumar Singhal, director general of police of the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), said “We have officers of the rank of deputy superintendent of police and other personnel posted in every district across the state, which may not be the case in several other states. This has made our teams far more accessible to complainants and results in a higher number of actions being initiated.”According to the department’s official website, anti-corruption branches in the state were first set up for Mumbai and mofussil areas (the rural districts or provincial region) in 1946 and were later centralised in 1953. “Given its long history and widespread presence, the ACB has been able to reach a larger population, which also helped in increasing public awareness about the department and the process for lodging complaints,” he added.
