STATE OF MAHARASHTRA Vs. MARTAND KHANDERAO CHAUDHRI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) AN order of acquittal for an offence under section 161 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 5 (1) (d) read with Section 5 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act is impugned in the present appeal.

(2.) THE learned Judge of the trial Court has given several cogent reasons for arriving at the order of acquittal. In my view, for the purposes of disposing of the present appeal only one ground may be mentioned, as, in my view, the same is sufficient to up-hold the order of acquittal passed in favour of the accused.

(3.) ACCORDING to the prosecution the accused had demanded a sum of rs, 100 for the purpose of doing an official act namely to issue an extract of record of rights in favour of the complainant in respect of Gat No. 492 by deleting the name of his father who had died on the 29th oi July, 1978. According to the complainant-PW 2--Dongar Sonu Dhangar the amount was demanded and accepted, for doing the aforesaid official act. As far as the accused js concerned, he has accepted the fact that he received the amount on the date of the trap. According to him, he asked the complainant to invest an amount of Rs. 100 in small savings. He promised to get the extract of the record of rights issued in favour of the complainant through the Talathi shri Thorat. In this context, this is what the complainant has stated in para 4 in his cross-examination. 1 am reproducing the relevant portion of the notes of evidence ad verbatim.