CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION Vs. PADMANABHA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is filed by CBI against the order of acquittal passed in Spl.C.C.38/2004 on the file of XXXII Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge and Special Judge for CBI Cases, Bengaluru (CCH.34) vide judgment dtd. 12/6/2009.

(2.) The factual matrix of the case is that the CBI police had filed the charge sheet against the respondents/accused for the offence punishable under Sec. 120B read with Sec. 409 of IPC and Sec. 13(2) read with Sec. 13(1)(c) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The charges levelled against the accused persons by the prosecution are that accused No.1 Sri. S.Mylaraiah was the Senior Technical Supervisor, RSU, MDF, Nazarbad parented to OCB Main Exchange, Gokulam, Mysuru where accused No.2 Sri. Padmanabha was the Contract Labourer and accused No.3 Sri. Ramesh was the Contract Labourer at OCB Main Exchange, Gokulam. Accused No.4 Sri. Yellappa was the Sub-Inspector (O) at O/o SDE, Telecom, Siddarthanagar, Mysore. Accused No.5 Cheluvaraju was the Telephone Operator at Telephone Exchange, Nazarbad. Accused No.6 Sri. P.K.Ramunni Kutty was the Phone Mechanic at O/o SDE (Central), D.D.Urs Road, Mysore. Accused No.7 Sri. Abdul Jabbar R/o Tellicherry and a friend of accused No.5 was working at Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Accused No. 8 Sri. Sajjad Haider and accused No.9 Mansoor Ahmed were residents of Thumbe near Mangalore.

(3.) It is the allegation against the accused persons that accused No.1 is the mastermind, who conspired with other accused persons and in pursuance of the said conspiracy, on extracting information about the five spare telephone numbers with STD/ISD facility in the system of RSU, MDF, Nazarbad, tampered and diverted them for illegal use to Bhagyalakshmi STD/PT Booth, Desika Road, Mysuru from 11/3/1997 to 24/6/1997, Chamundi Vasathi Gruha Lodge, Chandragupta Road, Mysuru from 11/4/1997 to 31/5/1997 and Hotel Sree Raghu Nivas near Ranjith Talkies, B.N. Road, Mysuru from 16/6/1997 to 24/6/1997 and utilized the lines illegally for connecting/inter-connecting thousands of ISD/STD calls between Riyadh and Dammam (Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) and India and caused wrongful loss to the tune of Rs.71.00 lakhs to the department and corresponding wrongful gain for themselves. In pursuance of the criminal conspiracy, accused No.1 on 11/3/1997 at 16.51 hours diverted the working STD/PT number No.420337 to Bhagyalakshmi STD/PT Booth for illegal use.