CBI Vs. P VIJAYARAGHAVAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in this appeal challenges the acquittal of the accused persons charged with offences under Sections 120B, 420, 468, 471 and 477A of the Indian Penal Code (in short, "IPC") and Section 13(1)(d) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (in short, "the Act"). Learned Judge after a full - fledged trial, by examining 22 witnesses and marking 105 documents on the side of the prosecution and also considering the evidence of one witness and five documents on the defence side, found that no offence was proved against the accused/respondents beyond reasonable doubt. The acquittal on the above reasoning is challenged in this appeal.

(2.) HEARD Shri Chandrasekhara Pillai, learned Standing Counsel for the appellant CBI and Shri M.K.Damodaran, learned Senior Counsel for the 1st respondent and Shri S.Rajeev, learned counsel for the 2nd respondent.

(3.) PROSECUTION case unfolded from the charge framed by the trial court is that the 1st accused Manager of the State Bank of India (SBI), ADB Branch, Kattappana, and the 2nd accused, a customer, conspired together to make unlawful pecuniary advantage to the latter by releasing securities placed before the bank for availing loans in the name of some loanees and pursuant to that conspiracy, the Ware House Receipts (WHR) deposited as securities for nine loan transactions were released by the 1st accused to the 2nd accused. The 2nd accused thereafter got the goods covered by those WHRs released from the warehouse and sold the articles. He got the sale proceeds credited to his own account rendering the nine loans unsecured. In order to cover up these fraudulent transactions, eleven fictitious loans were created by the 1st accused on the basis of false documents. For creating the eleven loans, 1st accused forged documents and used the same as genuine documents.