ANAND KERABA KESAKAR Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant convicted under Section 5 (1) (d) read with Section 5 (2) of the prevention of Corruption Act and sentenced to RI for two years and to pay a fine of Rs. 500/- in default RI for six months and under Section 161 of EPC sentenced to ri for one year and to pay a fine of Rs. 500/- in default RI for six months has preferred this appeal impugning the Judgment and Order dated 17-12-1990 delivered by the Special Judge, Kolhapur in Special Case No. 3 of 1987.

(2.) THE prosecution case briefly stated is as under : the appellant was at the relevant time working as Talathi, inter alia, for the village Bololi. The complainant Krishna Patil PW 1 had purchased seven gunthas of land out of Gat No. 751 by registered sale deed from Dagdu Patil PW 2 on 13-5-1986 About 2-3 months thereafter he met the appellant and showed him xerox copy of the sale deed and registration certificate and requested him for effecting mutation it, his name in the revenue record on the basis of the sale deed. The appellant who was working as Talathi handed over to him blank mutation form and asked him to obtain the signature of the vendor and return to him. After obtaining the thumb impression of the vendor and putting his own signature thereon, as instructed by the appellant, he returned the form to the appellant. In spite of the repeated requests made by the complainant, the appellant only kept on assuring the complainant but did not effect the mutation When the complainant enquired about the mutation in the Chawadi of village Bololi at about 8 a. m. on 26-11-86 the appellant demanded a sum of Rs. 500/- in order to effect mutation. On the request made by the complainant, the appellant first reduced the amount to Rs. 300/- and thereafter ultimately agreed to charge only Rs. 200/ -. The appellant was told to manage for the said amount by next Thursday to that he would do the needful about the mutation. On the following Monday i. e. 1-12-86 when the complainant's brother shripati Patil PW 4 met the appellant at Kolhapur, the appellant sent a word through him to the complainant to make payment on Thursday i. e. 4th December. The complainant approached the Anti Corruption Officer, Kolhapur on 3rd December 1986 and narrated the incident to the Dy. S. P. Patel who is the Investigating Officer examined as PW 8. The complaint came to be recorded which is Exhibit 11. Two panchas were arranged for the raid and the complainant and the panchas were directed by the Dy. S. P. Patel to attend the office of the Anti Corruption on 4-12-86 at 6 a. m. That morning the Dy. S. P Patel gave instructions to the panchas well as the complainant as to what they were supposed to do for laying the trap. The demonstration about the use and effect of application of anthracene powder in the ultra violet lamp was made to the panchas and the complainant. Four notes of Rs. 50/- denomination were produced by the complainant on which the demonstration was made after applying the anthracene powder to them. A panchanama about the same was prepared in the office of the Anti Corruption which is at Exhibit 22.

(3.) LATER on the Anti-corruption officers, two panchas and the complainant went to village Bololi where the accused was trapped after accepting the bribe amount of Rs. 200/- in the house of the complainant. Post trap panchanama was prepared. Thereafter accused along with the raiding party went to village Pasarde and searched the office of the accused from where some documents came to be seized. Thereafter the raiding party went to the house of the accused in village waghurde and searched the house. At the time of search of the house accused produced a bloank application form for mutation which is produced at Exhibit 10 which bore the signature of the complainant and thumb impressions to the vendor pw 2. Thereafter they went back to Kolhapur to the office of the Anti-corruption where the panchanama of the seal, of the envelope containing anthrancene powder, a cotton piece and waste paper came to be prepared.