R. MALINI AND OTHERS Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE two criminal appeals arise out of one and the same judgment of the Court below, A1 and A2 were the accused who have preferred these appeals and they were convicted by the trial Court in respect of the offences punishable under Sections 7 and 13(1)(d) read with 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

(2.) THE prosecution case in short is that, the accused viz., Malini, was working as Second Division Assistant in Taluk Office, Mysore, and A1 Chikkarangaiah was working as Grain Sahayak in the same office and they were approached by the complainant Sabeeha Begum who was in need of minority community certificate. As she had made the application for issue of the said certificate to the Tahsildar, she approached the accused and as per the complaint, A1 Chikkarangaiah is said to have demanded Rs. 200/ - from the complainant for issuance of the minority certificate. As A1 asked the complainant to bring the amount on 17.2.97, the complainant unwilling to pay the bribe amount of Rs. 200/ - to A1, went and lodged her complaint with the Lokayukta police on the same day. As the case was registered on the basis of the complaint Ex. P1 and after conducting the entrastmeet mahazar as per Ex. P3, the complainant along with the shadow witness Sumangala Bai (P.W. 5) went to the office of the accused at about 2.20 p.m. It is the prosecution case that the trap was successful inasmuch as A1 accepted the bribe amount of Rs. 200/ - on the direction of A2. After the test conducted proved to be positive insofar as A1 is concerned, after obtaining the sanction order Ex. P12, the charge sheet was submitted.

(3.) LEARNED trial judge after evidence appreciation, took the view that the evidence of P.W. 1 the complainant is corroborated by the shadow witness P.W. 5 and as A1 and A2 with the common intention had demanded and accepted the bribe amount of Rs. 200/ -, the trial Court therefore convicted both the accused with the aid of section 34 of IPC. Both the accused were sentenced to pay Rs. 5,000/ - fine apart from undergoing six months R.I. for the offence punishable under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, In respect of conviction under Section 13(1)(d) read with 13(2) of the said Act, both the accused were sentenced to one year R.I. and pay Rs. 5,000/ - fine. Default sentences were also awarded.