STATE OF MP Vs. DALCHAND YADAV

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE State of Madhya pradesh has filed this appeal against the judgment of acquittal passed by learned special Judge, Damoh in Special Case No. 7/92 acquitting the respondent under sections 7, 13 (1) (d) read with Section 13 (2) of prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (in short 'the Act' ).

(2.) IN brief the case of prosecution is that respondent Dalchand Yadav was serving on the post of Tahsildar in the year 1989 and is posting was at Tendukheda. During that period complainant Premchand Jain submitted an application to get the Patta of the government land given to him, renewed to the S. D. O. On the said application, Sub-Divisional officer directed respondent to submit a report. It is the further case of prosecution that in order to give report /recommendation in favour of complainant, the respondent made a demand of illegal gratification of Rs. 1,000/- from him and out of which earlier Rs. 800/- were paid by the complainant to the respondent and for the balance amount of Rs. 200/- gave assurance that the same shall be paid to the respondent later on. Since, the complainant did not want to give the balance amount of rs. 200/- towards bribe, he submitted a written complaint on 7th March, 1989 before the Special Police Establishment at jabalpur on the basis of which a trap was arranged.

(3.) IN order to give positive result to the trap, two currency notes of Rs. 100/- each covered by phenolphthalein powder were given to the complainant and their numbers were noted down in the Panchanama. Thereafter, the trap party arrived in the Court of respondent where it is said that complainant gave those currency notes of Rs. 200/-to the respondent and thereafter gave signal to the members of the trap party. On seeing the signal, the members of the trap party entered inside the Court room of respondent and caught hold of his hands and they were washed in the solution of Sodium carbonate. On washing of the hands, the solution turned to dirty pink colour. But the currency notes were not recovered from the possession of respondent. Thereafter, when the search was made, the currency notes were found lying behind the curtain of the window of his Court room, Their numbers were tallied with the number of the trap panchanama which were found to be the same.