S NARAYANA PILLAI Vs. STATE OF TAMIL NADU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The accused in Special Case No. 2 of 1985 on the file of the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate and Special Judge, Nagercoil, is the appellant. The accused was working as Revenue Inspector in Nagercoil Municipality. He was charged for offences under S. 161 of the Indian Penal Code and also under S. 5(2) read with S. 5(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

(2.) The case of the prosecution is that the accused had received a sum of Rs. 100/- by way of illegal gratification from Narayanan, P.W. 1 (Rs. 50/- for himself and Rs. 50/- for the Bill Collector, in all Rs. 100/-) by misusing his position as a public servant, promising to P.W. 1 that he would not raise the house tax. The accused denied the charges and pleaded not guilty. The prosecution has examined P.Ws. 1 to 11 and marked Ex. P. 1 to 17 and M.Os. 1 to 3. The accused has examined one Shanmugham as D.W. 1 and marked Ex. D. 1 to D. 3 on his side. After considering the oral and documentary evidence, the trial Court found the accused guilty under S. 161 of the Indian Penal Code and under S. 5(2) read with S. 5(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The lower Court convicted and sentenced the accused under S. 5(2) read with S. 5(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act to undergo R.I. for one year. The lower Court has not imposed any sentence under S. 161 of the Indian Penal Code. Aggrieved by the judgment of the lower Court, the accused has filed this appeal.

(3.) P.W. 1, Narayanan, is an advocate at Nagercoil and he was living at No. 18/6-89 at Krishnan Koil area. P.W. 1 has let out his upstairs to Ramakrishnan and the eastern portion to one Sivasubramaniam, P.W. 3, on a monthly rent of Rs. 50/- each. According to P.W. 1 the half-yearly tax for the house is Rs. 58-80. After the father of P.W. 1 had expired, demand notice was issued to P.W. 9, Boothalingam, elder brother of P.W. 1. But P.W. 1 alone was paying the house tax for the said house and at the end of November 1983, Muthuraj, the Bill Collector of Nagercoil Municipality, went to P.W. 1 and told him that they were going to raise the house tax from Rs. 58-80 to Rs. 300/- since P.W. 1 had let out the house to tenants. When Muthuraj, the Bill Collector told him definitely that he house tax would be raised by the Municipality and P.W. 1 asked him as to what was the remedy for not raising the house tax. According to P.W. 1, the Bill Collector told him that if P.W. 1 would pay a sum of Rs. 50/- for himself and another sum of Rs. 100/- for the accused, then the problem could be solved. After four or five days, P.W. 1 went to the Municipal office, met the accused and asked him about the proposed increase of house tax and for which the accused is said to have told P.W. 1 that if P.W. 1 would pay a sum of Rs. 50/- for himself and Rs. 50/- to Muthuraj, the Bill Collector, then the problem could be solved. P.W. 1 deposed that he met the Bill Collector on 13-12-1983 at Municipal Office and the said Bill Collector asked him whether he had brought the money. P.W. 1 told him that he had no money then and he was having only Rs. 25/- and he paid to the Bill Collector the sum of Rs. 25/- and by accepting the said money, the Bill Collector told him that P.W. 1 should pay the balance of Rs. 25/- before the 15th of that month as otherwise the tax would be increased and he also advised P.W. 1 to go and meet the accused. On 15-12-1983 at 7-30 a.m. P.W. 1 went to the house of the accused and according to him, the accused enquired whether he had brought the money. P.W. 1 replied that he had no money then and he would bring the money in the evening. It is also the evidence of P.W. 1 that the accused told him that the sum of Rs. 100/- should be paid in the evening at the office as otherwise the tax would be increased. P.W. 1 thought that the bribe should not be given to the accused and so he wanted to give a report to the Police. Accordingly, he prepared Ex. P. 1 and went to the Anti Corruption Office at Nagercoil at 3.00 p.m., and he gave the same to P.W. 11, Balasubramaniam, Inspector of Police. P.W. 11, the Inspector of Police received Ex. P. 1 report submitted by P.W. 1 at 3 p.m. on 15-12-1983 and registered the case in Cr. No. 4/83. Then P.W. 11 sent for two official witnesses and he made arrangement through Bharathan, Inspector of Police, for the trap. Vincent and Abdul Hameed, the officials from the Sub Treasury Office at Nagercoil were sent for that purpose by P.W. 11 and P.W. 11 introduced the two officials to P.W. 1 and gave Ex.P. 1 to them for perusal and they read over the same. P.W. 1 produced the currency notes to the value Rs. 100/- to P.W. 11. He made arrangement for preparation of Sodium Carbonate solution through his subordinate and he explained the significance of the test to P.W. 1 and 2 and Vincent. He prepared a mahazar for the proceedings under Ex. P. 2 and P.Ws. 1, 2, Vincent and Bharathan have signed in Ex. P. 2. P.W. 11 asked P.W. 2, Abdul Hameed, to accompany P.W. 1 to the house of the accused and P.W. 1 gave instructions to P.W. 1 to give the money to the accused if the latter had asked for it and to give signal by rubbing his face with handkerchief. Accordingly, P.Ws. 1 and 2 went in a scooter to the office of the Municipality and there the accused was not present till about 7 p.m., and on instructions of P.W. 11, P.Ws. 1 and 2 went to the house of the accused and to pay the money to the accused and if the accused had received the money, P.W. 1 should give a signal by putting on the torch light and P.W. 11 also gave a two-cell torch light to P.W. 1 for the said purpose. P.W. 2 was instructed to hear the conversation between P.W. 1 and the accused and to watch the payment of money to the accused. Accordingly, P.W. 2 stood near the outer window of the house of the accused and P.W. 1 went to the house of the accused at 7-45 p.m. and the accused asked P.W. 1 as to whether P.W. 1 had got the money, P.W. 1 took the amount from his diary and paid it to the accused and the accused counted the same. The accused is said to have asked P.W. 1 as to whether P.W. 1 had to pay the balance of Rs. 25/- to the Bill Collector Muthuraj and told him that they would not increase the house tax. P.W. 1 came out of the house and the accused came out and saw P.W. 2. The accused after receiving the money kept it on a Bench in his room and P.W. 1 gave the signal with the torch light as instructed and the Superintendent of Police and his party, P.W. 2, P.W. 3 and P.W. 1 entered the house of the accused and the accused was found perplexed. P.W. 11 introduced P.W. 2 and others to the accused and he arranged for preparation of Sodium Carbonate solution and he directed the accused to dip his fingers. Accordingly the accused dipped his fingers in the solution and the colour of the solution turned into Pink. Then he took the solution in M.Os. 1 and 2 bottles separately and asked the accused about the money received by him from P.W. 1. The accused showed the currency notes on the Bench and he directed P.W. 1 and Vincent to check the numbers of the currency notes with the mahazar prepared by him already. A mahazar was prepared for the proceedings under Ex.P. 3 and P.W. 11 arrested the accused and prepared an observation mahazar under Ex.P. 4 and searched the house of the accused. Ex.P. 13 is the rough sketch of the place of occurrence. P.W. 11 sent the mahazars and also the M.Os. to the lower Court on 17-12-1983 and also gave Ex.P. 8 requisition to the Court for sending M.Os. 1 and 2 for chemical examination. P.W. 11 examined P.W. 4 on 21-12-1983 and also brought the Register regarding the house tax. P.W. 12 got Ex. P.5 monthly register from the office of the Municipality and found that the house tax by P.W. 1 was not at all recommended for enhancement of tax for P.W. 1's house. P.W. 8, the Head Clerk of the lower Court received Ex.P. requisition given by P.W. 11 for sending the M.Os. for chemical examination and accordingly he had done so and P.W. 8 received Ex.P. 10 report of the Chemical Examiner. On 29-1-1985, P.W. 11 went to Madras and obtained Ex.P. 12 sanction to prosecute the accused and he examined P.W. 10, Personal Assistant to the Director of the Municipality. P.W. 11 received Ex. P. 11 sanction order signed by P.W. 10. Subsequently, P.W. 11 came to know that the sanction order should be signed by the Director of Municipality and so he got his signature under Ex. P. 12. Ex.P. 15 is the Demand Register and Ex.P. 16 is the Property Tax Register. On 14-12-1983 and 15-12-1983, the accused was on casual leave and P.W. 7 Ranganathan gave evidence about the leave taken by the accused on those days. P.W. 11 found from Ex. P. 15 that the tax for the house of Boothalingam was only Rs. 5880. After examining all the witnesses, P.W. 11 filed the charge sheet against the accused on 21-3-1985 before the lower Court.