The Supreme Court has acquitted a former public servant in a corruption case that dates back more than two decades, finding that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had acted with “serious lacuna and impatience” during its probe.
The case centered on allegations that the appellant, then Divisional Security Commissioner of the Railway Protection Force, had abused his position to solicit and receive illicit gratification through subordinate officials who acted as intermediaries for RPF personnel seeking transfers and other service benefits. A trap was laid by the CBI after the complainant reported the alleged bribe on 3 August 2005, and the trap was executed the following day, 4 August 2005, the same day an FIR was lodged.
In its verdict delivered on 16 September, a bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and N. Kotiswar Singh noted that the trap was conducted in an “extraordinarily speedy manner” and that the investigation had not allowed the trap to run its full course. The court observed that the CBI had failed to keep a watch on the appellant himself, instead focusing on a person who later became an approver witness, raising reasonable doubt about the prosecution’s case.
The court emphasized that under the Prevention of Corruption Act, proof of demand and acceptance of illicit gratification is central to a conviction. Given the lingering doubts about the trap’s execution and the trial court’s disregard of these concerns, the Supreme Court held that the charge could not be proved beyond reasonable doubt and granted the appellant a full acquittal in all related cases.
