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2016 (4) TMI 1285 - SC - Indian LawsSetting aside the order of acquittal - High Court held the appellant-accused guilty of the offences punishable under Sections 7, 13(1)(d) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 - establish the guilt of the accused - legality of evaluation of the evidence and the findings recorded by the trial court Held that:- In order to constitute an offence under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, ‘proof of demand’ is a sine quo non. In the present case, trial court recorded an order of acquittal on the evidence and circumstances:-(i) delay in lodging the complaint; (ii) even though the appellant is alleged to have made the demand on 09.12.1997 at Chitradurga, absence of the appellant in Chitradurga from 07.12.1997 to 10.12.1997 and absence of proof of demand; (iii) doubts raised regarding the submission of the documents Ex. P6 to P15 by PW-1 for processing the pension papers and settling the retiral benefits and (iv) inconsistency in the evidence of prosecution witnesses in establishing the acceptance of the amount by the appellant. Absence of proof of demand on 09.12.1997, coupled with PW-2’s evidence that the amount was paid by PW-1 to the appellant towards purchase of diesel raises serious doubts about the amount being paid by PW-1 as illegal gratification. High Court neither considered the defence plea of alibi nor it held that the decision of the trial court was erroneous or perverse. In our view, evaluation of the evidence made by the trial court while recording an order of acquittal does not suffer from any infirmity or illegality or manifest error and the grounds on which the order of acquittal is based cannot be said to be unreasonable. While so, High Court was not justified in interfering with the order of acquittal and the impugned judgment cannot be sustained. In the result, appeal is allowed and the impugned judgment of the High Court is set aside and the order of trial court acquitting the appellant of the charges is restored. The appellant is on bail, his bail bonds stand discharged.
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