India, March 5 -- Corrupt elements in the higher echelons of the government and political parties are a greater menace to society than even hired killers, the Supreme Court has held, delivering a scathing indictment of corruption in public life.

"If the society in a developing country faces a menace greater than even the one from the hired assassins to its law and order, then that is from the corrupt elements at the higher echelons of the government and of the political parties," noted a bench of justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan.

The bench made these strong observations while rejecting anticipatory bail to Devinder Kumar Bansal, an audit inspector in the Punjab government, accused of demanding bribes in exchange for auditing develo...