H. NAGARAJ Vs. STATE BY LOKAYUKTA POLICE, BELGAUM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) CRIMINAL Petition No. 1232 of 2001 is filed against the order passed in Special Case No. 43 of 1995 on the file of the Special Judge -cum -Principal Sessions Judge, Belgaum.

(2.) THE petitioner in Cri. P.No. 1232 of 2001 is charge -sheeted for an offence punishable under Sections 7 and 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act by the Lokayukta Police, Belgaum on the allegation that the petitioner is employed as Assistant Engineer, K.E.B., Belgaum Division. While discharging is official duties alleged to have demanded and accepted illegal gratification of Rs. 30,000/ - from one Abbasaheb Surendra Hulamani, a K.E.B. contractor to get his bill sanctioned. The Lokayukta Police laid the trap successfully, on completion of investigation, obtained the sanction order from the Chief Engineer (Electrical) (General), Bangalore, K.E.B. and filed the charge -sheet.

(3.) BEFORE the Trial Court, the ruling of this Court in Jaffar Khan Vs. State by Police Inspector, Bureau of Investigation, Karnataka Lokayukta, was relied on in support of the contention that the employees of the K.E.B. are governed by the Karnataka Electricity Board Employees' (Classification, Disciplinary Control and Appeal) Regulations, 1987 and Regulation 14 -A. Sub -clause (e) empowers the Board to impose the penalty on the delinquent employee whose alleged misconduct investigated into by the Lokayukta, therefore argued that sanction accorded by the Chief Engineer is invalid and that the Board alone is competent to accord sanction. The Trial Court rejected I.A. No. I. Being aggrieved, the present petition is filed.