T M JACOB Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is a member of the Kerala Legislative Assembly. He was formerly a Minister in charge of Irrigation. In the capacity as Minister for the Irrigation the petitioner had participated in the meeting of the subject committee for Irrigation constituted by the Legislative Assembly. The said committee met on 16-5-1995 and took certain decisions in respect of Karappara - Kuriyarkutty Project. In 1997 a vigilance case was registered against several officers in respect of certain grave irregularities and charges of corruption. The petitioner was added as the 9th accused. Exhibit P-1 is a report submitted by the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau, Palakkad before the Enquiry Commissioner and Special Judge, Kozhikode. Exhibit P-1 discloses that the accused working in the capacity of Engineers in the State Irrigation Department entered into criminal conspiracy with the contractor and abused their official position as public servants and as a result of the acts and omissions caused wrongful loss of Rs. 150 lakhs to the Government and thereby obtained undue pecuniary advantage to themselves by corrupt and illegal means. In Exhibit P-1 report the petitioner was added as the 9th accused on the following information obtained by the investigating officer :

(2.) Thereafter the Governor of Kerala was approached for seeking sanction to prosecute the petitioner. Coming to know about the above development the petitioner as per Exhibit P-2 requested the Governor of Kerala to give him an opportunity of being heard before any decision is taken on the question of granting sanction. As per Exhibit P-3 the petitioner also requested the Governor to furnish him a copy of the order granting sanction.

(3.) This Original Petition has been filed mainly to quash all proceedings in the vigilance case No. 1/97 pending before the Court of Inquiry Commissioner and Special Judge, Kozhikode. The petitioner has also sought for declaration that the order of sanction granted by the Governor of Kerala is void, inoperative and unsustainable in law.