SANJAY PALSANIA Vs. CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this application, the petitioner has prayed for quashing of the entire criminal proceeding in connection with R.C. Case No. 22(A)/09(R) including the order dated 07.01.2011 passed by the learned Sessions Judge-I-cum- Special Judge, C.B.I., Dhanbad, whereby and whereunder, the cognizance has taken for the offence punishable u/Ss. 120-B, 420, 468 and 471 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 13(2) & 13(1) (d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

(2.) The allegations reveal that one Ram Nihora Prasad Singh, the then Executive Engineer, Road Construction Department, Giridih during the period 2005-06 entered into a criminal conspiracy amongst themselves and with M/s. PABSCON and in pursuance thereof on the basis of false and bogus invoices showing procurement of bitumen, the contract work was shown to have been executed causing loss to the State and wrongful gain to the contractor. It has been alleged that for the work exceeding Rs. 10 Lakhs, the construction materials including the bitumen is to be procured by the contractor from the Public Sector Undertakings i.e. Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), etc. M/s. PABSCON was awarded contractual work vide agreement No. 3-F2/2005-06 for widening and strengthening of Govindpur-Tundi-Giridh Road at a contractual value of Rs. 3,39,28,670/- against which after completion of job the contractor had submitted 68 Nos. of invoices showing procurement of bitumen out of which 35 invoices were issued by IOCL, Bokaro and all the invoices were found to be forged. The allegation against the petitioner is that the petitioner being the Depot Operator of HPCL, Jamshedpur had verified 46 numbers of invoices issued in the name of the contractor and the same were found to be genuine. One invoice No. 102842 was found to be forged and 03 numbers of invoices have been manipulated.

(3.) On 31.12.2010, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had submitted charge-sheet against Shashi Kant Gopalka, Ganesh Kumar, the then Assistant Engineers, Ashwini Kumar Mahto, Junior Engineer and the petitioner.