DAVINDER SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) COUNSEL for the parties have been heard at length. The petitioner, who is holding the post of Panchayat Secretary in the Department of Rural Development and Panchayats, State of Punjab has challenged in terms of filing the present writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the orders dated 14.09.2005 (Annexure P-28) and 17.11.2006 (Annexure P-32), whereby, respondent No.2 has granted sanction for prosecution against the petitioner under Section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Section 197 Cr.P.C.

(2.) THE first submission raised by learned counsel for the petitioner while impugning the orders granting sanction for prosecution against the petitioner is that in terms of Section 197 Cr.P.C. and Section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, the Investigating Agency is required to take sanction from the Competent Authority before prosecuting any government employee and in the case in hand, respondent No.2 has not applied its mind independently prior to grant of sanction and as such, the impugned orders granting sanction can not be sustained. Towards advancing such submission, learned counsel would refer to the draft submitted by the Investigating Agency (Annexure P-27) and would submit that the language contained in the impugned orders granting sanction is verbatim the same as employed in the draft. Accordingly, counsel would submit that respondent No.2 while granting sanction has only completed a formality and has signed the dotted line and there has been no independent application of mind as regards the material produced by the Investigating Agency seeking sanction for prosecution against the petitioner.

(3.) FROM the impugned sanction orders, it would not be possible to conclude that the Competent Authority has not applied its mind prior to granting sanction. Merely because language of the impugned orders as also the draft submitted by the Investigating Agency seeking sanction were couched in identical terms can not made the basis of setting aside an order granting sanction.