YED RAM Vs. CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE challenge in this appeal is to the judgment and order dated 19/20.4.2000, rendered by the Special Judge, Anti -Corruption, Dehradun while concluding the Criminal Case no.13 of 1991, CBI Vs. Yad Ram. The learned Judge found the accused Yad Ram guilty for the offence of Section 13(2) r/w Section 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 [hereinafter to be referred as the Act] and sentenced him to undergo one year R.I. and fine of Rs.500/ - . The accused was further sentenced to undergo six months' R.I. with fine of Rs.200/ - u/s 7 of the Act. Both the sentences were directed to run concurrently. It was also directed that in case of default of payment of fine, the accused shall undergo six months' R.I. in addition to the above punishment.

(2.) THE brief facts, shorn of unnecessary details, are that accused Yad Ram was a Senior Civil Engineer posted in I.D.P.L., Rishikesh (a government undertaking) and the informer Ram Kumar was a contractor, who used to perform the civil construction work after entering into the contract with IDPL. The contracts were awarded on the basis of a prescribed procedure of inviting the tenders, and according to the said procedure, the contract was awarded to Ram Kumar on 23.2.1991 for cleansing the Sludge Chambers WPP. The work assigned to Ram Kumar was finished by him in May, 1991. The total consideration of the entire work was Rs.33,000/ - . In respect of the said consideration, payment of two running bills was made to Ram Kumar during the course of his working to the assigned task whereas, an amount, to the tune of Rs.8,000/ -, was yet to be made. In that respect, he called -on the appellant Yad Ram Sagar, Senior Civil Engineer, IDPL many a times and retreated for making the payments, but he kept on feigning for one reason or the other. Sri Ram Kumar ultimately requested for the said payment on 10.9.91 to Mr. Sagar, who, at that time, demanded Rs.400/ - in advance, as his commission for making the said payment. The complainant assured to make the payments due, provided the said amount of commission is paid to him by the succeeding day. So, the estranged contractor Ram Kumar approached to the Superintendent of Police, Central Bureau of Investigation (hereinafter to be called as CBI) Dehradun, with all these facts and expressed that he did not want to give any illegal gratification and as such, he invoked the jurisdiction of the CBI to take appropriate action in the matter. He provided all these facts in writing vide an application which is Ex.Ka -18.

(3.) THE trap party, on 11.9.1991, along with the decoy Ram Kumar, made the pre -trap preparations and even organized a mock demonstration of trapping so that the attempt to trap the accused may not suffer with any laches or lapse.