SREEDHARAN PILLAI Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant who was the Assistant Station Master at Mankara on the Southern Railway stands convicted under S.161 of the Indian Penal Code and S.5 (1) (d) and 5 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 2 of 1947. He was sentenced to a term of rigorous imprisonment for one year.

(2.) The case against the appellant was that on 18-3-1958 he received a sum of Rs. 3/- from Ummer (Pw. 2) as illegal gratification for sending a consignment of mangoes and jack fruits by train from Mankara Station to Coimbatore. On 17-3-1958 Pw. 8, an Inspector of Police, Delhi Special Police Establishment, received at Coimbatore a petition (Ex. P2) from Pw. 2 complaining that the Station Masters at Mankara were in the habit of receiving illegal gratification for sending goods from there to Coimbatore, at the rate of 4 annas per bag and 2 annas per basket of fruits. Pw. 8 moved the District Magistrate, Palghat, for grant of sanction to investigate the offence and obtained such sanction (Ex. P10) the same day. He proceeded to Mankara the next day and quite accidentally he met Pw. 2 there. The latter offered to prove his allegation against the Station Master and invited Pw. 8 to come to the Railway Station and witness payment of illegal gratification to the Station Master. They proceeded together to the office of the Adhikari where Pw. 8 examined the five currency notes which Pw. 2 had and prepared a list (Ex. P3) showing the numbers of the notes. These consisted of one 5 rupee note, two 2 rupee notes and two 1 rupee notes. Pw. 8 sought the assistance of the Adhikari to catch the culprit. Pw. 2 was then sent to the Railway Station to book the goods, directing him to pay mamool only if the same was demanded. The Amsom Menon (Pw. 3) was also sent to the Railway Station to watch and report. Pw. 8 and the Adhikari (Pw. 7) then went to a building situated opposite to the Station and they were watching the scene from a window upstairs. Pw. 3 went to the waiting room to observe the transaction through the window. After getting the goods weighed, Pw. 2 accompanied by Pw. 6 who was acting as his agent went into the Station Masters room and paid a sum of Rs. 6-11-0 to the accused as freight. He tendered a five rupee note and a two rupee note towards this and got the balance, viz., 5 annas. When Pws. 2 and 6 were about to leave the room, the accused demanded payment of mamool and on Pw. 2 enquiring how much it came to, the accused told him that the rates were 4 annas per bag and 2 annas per basket. As the consignment consisted of 11 bags and 2 baskets, Pw. 2 paid Rs 3/- to the accused. Pws. 7 and 8 who were watching this from the building on the opposite side immediately rushed into the room and asked Pw. 2 to point out the person who demanded and received mamool and to state how much he had paid. He pointed out the accused and then Pw. 8 asked the accused to produce the amount received as mamool. The accused denied taking mamool and he took out the whole cash from the chest and placed it on the table. Pw. 8 asked the Station Master, Subramonia Iyer, who was present in the room to find out from the books the actual cash that should be in the chest. Subramonia Iyer went through the books and stated that the cash balance according to the books should be Rs. 78-8-3. The money in the chest was counted by Pw. 8 who found a sum of Rs. 78-4-9, i. e., a deficit of 3 1/2 annas. From the money produced, Pw. 8 took M. Os. Nos. 1 to 4, four currency notes of the aggregate value of Rs. 10/-, the numbers of which tallied with the list (Ex. P3). The notes thus taken were one 5 rupee note, two 2 rupee notes and one, 1 rupee note. The balance which Pw. 2 had was also checked and found to be Rs. 1-5-0. Pw. 8 took this sum from Pw. 2, got signed statements from the persons there and prepared observation mahazars. He sent up Ex. P-12 as the first information report. After obtaining the requisite sanction (Ex- P1) from the General Manager, Southern Railway, the accused was arrested and charged with offences under S.161 I. P. C. and S.5 (1) (d) and (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act (2 of 1947). The learned Special Judge found the accused guilty under both the sections and sentenced him to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one year for the offence under Act 2 of 1947, no separate sentence being awarded for the offence under S.161 I. P. C.

(3.) The main question for decision is whether the accused demanded for and received a sum of Rs. 3/- from Pw. 2 as illegal gratification. Though the Prosecution relied on the evidence of Pws. 2, 3, 6, 7 and 8 to establish the guilt of the accused, the learned Judge refused, and in my opinion rightly so, to act on the testimony of Pws. 3, 7 and 8. Though Pws. 3, 7 and 8 asserted that they saw the payment of mamool by Pw. 2 the learned Judge who conducted a local investigation was satisfied that they could not have seen the same on account of the situation of the Station Masters room and its doors in relation to the respective places from which the witnesses were stated to have seen such payment. According to the learned Judge, Pws. 2 and 6 are the only persons who could have witnessed the payment of the sum of Rs. 3/- as mamool.