Gujarat High Court
Dr. Rajesh Chandulal Shah vs State Of Gujarat on 12 June, 2018
Equivalent citations: AIRONLINE 2018 GUJ 152
Author: J.B.Pardiwala
Bench: J.B.Pardiwala
R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CRIMINAL MISC.APPLICATION NO. 9278 of 2018
FOR APPROVAL AND SIGNATURE:
HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE J.B.PARDIWALA Sd/-
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1 Whether Reporters of Local Papers may be allowed to YES
see the judgment ?
2 To be referred to the Reporter or not ? YES
3 Whether their Lordships wish to see the fair copy of the NO
judgment ?
4 Whether this case involves a substantial question of law NO
as to the interpretation of the Constitution of India or any
order made thereunder ?
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DR. RAJESH CHANDULAL SHAH
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT
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Appearance:
MR RJ GOSWAMI(1102) for the PETITIONER(s) No. 1
SIDDHARTH R KHESKANI(9483) for the PETITIONER(s) No. 1
MS MOXA THAKKAR, APP (2) for the RESPONDENT(s) No. 1
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CORAM: HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE J.B.PARDIWALA
Date : 12/06/2018
ORAL JUDGMENT
1. This is an application for anticipatory bail at the instance of a public servant anticipating arrest in connection with the First Information Report bearing I-C.R. No.6/2018 registered with the ACB Police Station, District Ahmedabad, for the Page 1 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT offences punishable under Sections 7, 13(1)(d) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
2. One Manishkumar Ishwarlal Koshti lodged a first informant report dated 16.04.2018 at the concerned police station, inter alia, stating as under:
"My name is Manishkumar Ishwarlal Koshti, aged about adult, occupation business, residing at 63, Shiv Chamber, CTM Cross Roads, Ramol Road, Ahmedabad, Mobile Numbers 7874850282, 9909285835.
I dictate in person the fact of my complaint that I reside at the above stated address with my family and I earn my livelihood by doing work of signboard and other graphic related items on contract basis by the name of Kumkum Graphics.
I had undertaken a contract to put up a signboard of the L.G.Hospital, which is under the control and management of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation and payment for the same was due. In this connection, I had met Mr.R.C.Shah, Superintendent of the L.G.Hospital on 21/4/2017 and 17/7/2017. At that time, Mr.R.C.Shah had demanded bribe in the name of commission for undertaking the procedure regarding payment of my bill.
On 17/7/2017, when I met Mr.Shah in his Chamber, I had stated Mr.Shah while discussing about payment of my bill that "I am giving you fifteen thousand for payment of this bill Page 2 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT and for any new transactions, I would set the rate, if you say so." Therefore, Mr.Shah told me, "You yourself do it." Hence, I told him that, "Sir, as I told you, the reasonable rate would be around 10 per cent only. I cannot give more than this. I am also doing business. I was doing this as a side business. Therefore, he stated "Give me twenty at last." Thus, Mr. Shah had demanded an amount of Rs. 20,000/- for the pending bill of the work done by me and he had compelled me to give commission of 10 per cent for doing each new work of mine. Thereafter, this officer had made a phone call to me and demanded a bribe of Rs.25,000/- instead of Rs.20,000/-. At present, I do not remember as to when he had made that phone call and I also could not make any recording in this regard. But, as I had not received the payment of the pending bill of my work of the signboard, I felt that if I should not give money as per the demand of Mr.Shah, my bill may be kept pending. As I felt that I will get the money of my pending bill early, I was compelled to give Rs.25,000/- as demanded by Mr.Shah.
Thereafter, on 20/07/2017, when I again met Mr.Shah, I gave Rs.25,000/- to Mr.Shah hand to hand in his chamber as discussed earlier. Mr.Shah received Rs.25000/- with his hand. I recorded that monetary transaction of Rs.25,000/- of bribe in my mobile phone. Moreover, before I gave Rs.25,000/- to Mr.Shah, I had given Rs.15,000/- cash to Mr.Shah in his chamber by hand to hand, but I could not record that transaction. If I had not given the money to Mr.Shah as demanded by him, I would not have received the amount of Rs.1,17,216/- for my pending bill. Therefore, I Page 3 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT was compelled to give the bribe of total Rs.40,000/- to Mr.Shah as demanded by him to get the money of my pending bill. After paying the money of bribe, Rs.1,17,216/- of my pending bill was credited to my account on 18/09/2017.
Thus, as Mr.R.C.Shah demanded the bribe of Rs. 40,000/- from me for carrying out the process of payment of my outstanding bill, I paid him the said amount. As I informed about the same to my friend Rajendra Ramanbhai Sengal, he made an application to the Commissioner of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation on 03/10/2017 enclosing the C.D. of audio-video recording made by me. For that, my statement and the statement of my friend was recorded by the Vigilance Department, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation.
You showed me the application made by my friend on 03/10/2017 and one C.D. enclosed with it. The said application was made by my friend Rajendra Sengal and the said C.D. was recorded by me which I gave to my friend.
Thus, Shri R.C.Shah, Superintendent, L.G.Hospital, Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, inspite of being a public servant, demanded bribe from me for carrying out the process of the payment of my outstanding bill and received total amount of Rs.40,000/-. Therefore, it is my request to take legal action against him in this regard.
I have neither any monetary transaction nor any animosity with R.C.Shah.Page 4 of 23
R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT Aforesaid facts of my complaint have been typed on computer as dictated by me and its print out has been obtained and read over to me, which is true and correct therefore I have put my signature."
3. Thus, it appears from the materials on record that the first informant had a contract of putting hoardings in the hospital in which the applicant is serving as a Medical Superintendent and Professor of Surgery. There was a pending bill of about Rs.1,17,000/- of the first informant. The first informant was requesting to clear the bill. At this point of time, when the investigation is in progress, something very clinching and important material has been pointed out by the learned APP appearing for the state. It is in the form of a transcript of the telephonic conversation between the applicant herein and the first informant. I have gone through the transcript of the telephonic conversation. The telephonic conversation on record speaks for itself subject to the verification of its authenticity in the course of the investigation. As on date, there is no reason for me to disbelieve the case put up by the first informant. It would be too much for this Court to take the view that the applicant has been falsely involved in the offence. There might be some delay in lodging the FIR. That by itself would not entitle the Page 5 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT applicant to pray for anticipatory bail having regard to the transcript of the telephonic conversation and the other materials on record..
4. An affidavit in reply has been filed on behalf of the investigating officer, inter alia, stating as under:
"4. The original applicant had approached this Hon'ble Court for praying for the anticipatory bail under section 438 of Cr.P.C. vide C.R. No.I-06/2018 at A.C.B. Police Station, Ahmedabad. The brief facts of the case is that the original applicant is working as Medical Superintendent in L.G.Hospital, Ahmedabad. He is also in-charge of the administrative work of L.G. Hospital. The complaint is a layman and painter by profession. The complainant had prepared sign board at L.G. Hospital worth Rs.1,17,216/-. When the work was over the complainant had asked for the payment and accused had demanded the gratification of Rs.40,000/- The complainant had paid Rs.25,000/- bribe amount on 20.07.2017 to the accused. The complainant had also video recorded the whole translation with the accused. The complainant had produced the Audio and Video evidence to the Vigilance Department of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation. Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has suspended the original applicant and initiated to the A.C.B. Police Station. Pursuant to the communication, A.C.B. Police Station had continued the investigation. Prior to that the Vigilance Department of Ahmedabad Municipal Page 6 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT Corporation had already forwarded the Audio and Video recording to the F.S.L. Department and F.S.L. Department had opined that the Audio and Video evidence against the accused is untented, genuine. Hence, it could be used as primary evidence as per Section 65 of Indian Evidence Act.
5. The investigation authority had carried out further investigation and found more than prima facie evidence against the accused. The investigation officer had opposed the anticipatory bail application of the applicant even before the Learned Trial Court by way of filing detailed affidavit dated 24.04.2018 signed by Mr. D.P. Bhatt, Police Inspector, A.C.B. Police Station, Anand. A copy of reply filed by the investigation officer before Trial Court on 24.04.2018 is annexed herewith and marked as Annexure R-I."
5. The investigation is at a very crucial stage. The applicant being a public servant has been charged with the offence under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. No exceptional or special circumstances have been pointed out by the learned senior counsel for the purpose of grant of anticipatory bail.
6. The learned senior counsel appearing for the applicant very vehemently submitted that the applicant has an unblemished blot-less career of about 30 years in the hospital. It appears that a departmental inquiry has also been initiated and the applicant has been put under suspension.
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7. The learned senior counsel also submitted that his client is ready and willing to undergo the voice spectrography test. If the applicant on his own free will and volition agrees to submit himself to such test, it is always open for him to undergo.
Probably, the report of the voice spectrography test may make the picture further clear. However at this point of time, having regard to the materials on record, I am not inclined to exercise my discretion in favour of the applicant for the purpose of grant of anticipatory bail.
8. Grant of anticipatory bail in corruption matters involving public servants should be in the rarest of rare cases. It is a settled position of law that neither anticipatory bail nor regular bail can be granted as a matter of rule. The anticipatory bail, being an extraordinary privilege, should be granted only in exceptional cases. It is only if the court is convinced, on the basis of the materials on record, that a public servant has been falsely involved or that the allegations of demand or acceptance of illegal gratification are with an oblique motive or tainted with malafides, that the court may consider to protect such public servant by grant of anticipatory bail. Why should a corrupt public servant, who is not only a menace to the society but a potential threat so far as the progress of the country is Page 8 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT concerned, be shown any indulgence by a court of law by granting him protection in the form of an anticipatory bail.
Although, the learned senior counsel tried his best to persuade the court to believe that the FIR is false and the allegations levelled do not inspire any confidence, yet I am afraid, the materials on record do prima facie indicate the involvement of the applicant-accused.
9. In State of M.P. & Anr. v. Ram Kishna Balothia & Anr., AIR 1995 SC 1198, the Supreme Court considered the nature of the right of anticipatory bail and observed as under:
"We find it difficult to accept the contention that Section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is an integral part of Article 21. In the first place, there was no provision similar to Section 438 in the old Criminal Procedure Code..... Also anticipatory bail cannot be granted as a matter of right. It is essentially a statutory right conferred long after the coming into force of the Constitution. It cannot be considered as an essential ingredient of Article 21 of the Constitution. And its non-application to a certain special category of offences cannot be considered as violative of Article 21."
10. While deciding the aforesaid cases, the Supreme Court referred to the 41st Report of the Indian Law Commission dated 24th September, 1969 recommending the introduction of a provision for grant of anticipatory bail wherein it has been observed that "power to grant anticipatory bail should be exercised in very exceptional cases".
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11. In Jai Prakash Singh vs. State of Bihar & Anr., AIR 2012 SC 1676, the Supreme Court has explained in details the parameters for grant of anticipatory bail. While holding that the anticipatory bail can be granted only in exceptional circumstances where the court is prima facie of the view that the applicant has been falsely enroped in the crime, the Supreme Court observed as under :
"16. Ms. Kavita Jha, learned counsel appearing for the accused/respondents has vehemently advanced the arguments on the concept of life and liberty enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution of India placing a very heavy reliance on the observations made by this Court in Siddharam Satlingappa Mhetre v. State of Maharashtra and Ors., AIR 2011 SC 312, and submitted that unless the custodial interrogation is warranted in the facts and circumstances of the case, not granting anticipatory bail amounts to denial of the rights conferred upon a citizen/person under Article 21 of the Constitution. We are afraid the law as referred to hereinabove does not support the case as canvassed by learned counsel for the accused- respondents. More so, the Constitution Bench of this Court in Kartar Singh v. State of Punjab, (1994) 3 SCC 569, while summing up the law in para 368, interalia, held as under:
"Section 20(7) of the TADA Act excluding the application of Section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure in relation to any case under the Act and the Rules made thereunder, cannot be said to have Page 10 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT deprived the personal liberty of a person as enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution."
(See also: Narcotics Control Bureau v. Dilip Prahlad Namade (2004) 3 SCC 619).
Therefore, we are not impressed by the submissions so advanced by learned counsel for the accused-respondents.
17. This Court in Siddharam Satlingappa Mhetre (supra) after considering the earlier judgments of this Court laid down certain factors and parameters to be considered while considering application for anticipatory bail :
"122. The following factors and parameters can be taken into consideration while dealing with the anticipatory bail:
i. The nature and gravity of the accusation and the exact role of the accused must be properly comprehended before arrest is made;
ii. The antecedents of the applicant including the fact as to whether the accused has previously undergone imprisonment on conviction by a Court in respect of any cognizable offence;
iii. The possibility of the applicant to flee from justice; iv. The possibility of the accused's likelihood to repeat similar or the other offences.Page 11 of 23
R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT v. Where the accusations have been made only with the object of injuring or humiliating the applicant by arresting him or her.
vi. Impact of grant of anticipatory bail particularly in cases of large magnitude affecting a very large number of people.
vii. The courts must evaluate the entire available material against the accused very carefully. The court must also clearly comprehend the exact role of the accused in the case. The cases in which accused is implicated with the help of sections 34 and 149 of the Indian Penal Code, the court should consider with even greater care and caution because over-implication in the cases is a matter of common knowledge and concern;
viii. While considering the prayer for grant of anticipatory bail, a balance has to be struck between two factors namely, no prejudice should be caused to the free, fair and full investigation and there should be prevention of harassment, humiliation and unjustified detention of the accused;
ix. The court to consider reasonable apprehension of tampering of the witness or apprehension of threat to the complainant;Page 12 of 23
R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT x. Frivolity in prosecution should always be considered and it is only the element of genuineness that shall have to be considered in the matter of grant of bail and in the event of there being some doubt as to the genuineness of the prosecution, in the normal course of events, the accused is entitled to an order of bail.
123. The arrest should be the last option and it should be restricted to those exceptional cases where arresting the accused is imperative in the facts and circumstances of that case.
124. The court must carefully examine the entire available record and particularly the allegations which have been directly attributed to the accused and these allegations are corroborated by other material and circumstances on record."
18. Parameters for grant of anticipatory bail in a serious offence are required to be satisfied and further while granting such relief, the court must record the reasons therefore. Anticipatory bail can be granted only in exceptional circumstances where the court is prima facie of the view that the applicant has falsely been enroped in the crime and would not misuse his liberty. (See: D.K. Ganesh Babu v. P.T. Manokaran & Ors., (2007) 4 SCC 434; State of Maharashtra & Anr. v. Mohd. Sajid Husain Mohd. S. Husain & Ors., (2008) 1 SCC 213; and Union of India v. Padam Narain Aggarwal & Ors., (2008) 13 SCC 305).
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19. The case at hand, if considered in the light of aforesaid settled legal proposition, we reach an inescapable conclusion that the High Court did not apply any of the aforesaid parameters, rather dealt with a very serious matter in a most casual and cavalier manner and showed undeserving and unwarranted sympathy towards the accused.
21. In the facts and circumstances of this case, we are of the considered opinion that it was not a fit case for grant of anticipatory bail. The High Court ought to have exercised its extraordinary jurisdiction following the parameters laid down by this Court in above referred to judicial pronouncements, considering the nature and gravity of the offence and as the FIR had been lodged spontaneously, its veracity is reliable. The High Court has very lightly brushed aside the fact that FIR had been lodged spontaneously and further did not record any reason as how the pre-requisite conditions incorporated in the statutory provision itself stood fulfilled. Nor did the court consider as to whether custodial interrogation was required.
The court may not exercise its discretion in derogation of established principles of law, rather it has to be in strict adherence to them. Discretion has to be guided by law; duly governed by rule and cannot be arbitrary, fanciful or vague. The court must not yield to spasmodic sentiment to unregulated benevolence. The order dehors the grounds provided in Section 438 Cr.P.C. itself suffers from non- application of mind and therefore, cannot be sustained in the eyes of law.
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12. The presumption of innocence, by itself, cannot be the sole consideration for grant of bail. The presumption of innocence is one of the considerations, which the court should keep in mind while considering the plea for bail. The salutary rule is to balance the cause of the criminal defendant and the cause of public justice. Over solicitous homage to the criminal defendant's liberty can, sometimes, defeat the cause of public justice. Over a period of time, a feeling seems to exist in some quarters that the object of criminal law is to protect the rights of the accused and that the criminal justicing system is envisioned as a sentinel of the rights of the accused. It is not so. The law is the sentinel of rights of the society and of the individual. The rights of the criminal defendant will be as zealously guarded, as the cause of public justice. Pre-trial detention in itself is not an evil, nor opposed to the basic presumption of innocence.
13. If liberty is to be denied to an accused to ensure corruption free society, then the courts should not hesitate in denying such liberty. Where overwhelming considerations in the nature aforesaid require denial of anticipatory bail, it has to be denied. It is altogether a different thing to say that once the investigation is over and charge-sheet is filed, the court may consider to grant regular bail to a public servant - accused of indulging in corruption.
14. Avarice is a common frailty of mankind and Robert Walpole's famous pronouncement that all men have their price, notwithstanding the unsavoury cynicism that it suggests, is not very far from truth. As far back as more than two centuries ago, Page 15 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT it was Burke who cautioned: "Among a people generally corrupt, liberty cannot last long". In more recent years, Romain Rolland lamented that France fell because there was corruption without indignation. Corruption has, in it, very dangerous potentialities. Corruption, a word of wide connotation has, in respect of almost all the spheres of our day to day life, all the world over, the limited meaning of allowing decisions and actions to be influenced not by the rights or wrongs of a case but by the prospects of monetary gains or other selfish considerations.
15. If even a fraction of what was the vox pupuli about the magnitude of corruption to be true, then it would not be far removed from the truth, that it is the rampant corruption indulged in with impunity by highly placed persons that has led to economic unrest in this country. If one is asked to name one sole factor that effectively arrested the progress of our society to prosperity, undeniably it is corruption. If the society in a developing country faces a menace greater than even the one from the hired assassins to its law and order, then that is from the corrupt elements at the higher echelons of the Government and of the political parties.
16. In Manoj Narula v. Union of India (2014)9 SCC 1, the Supreme Court held that corruption erodes the fundamental tenets of the rule of law and quoted with approval its judgment in Niranjan Hemchandra Sashittal & Anr. v. State of Maharashtra (2013) 4 SCC 642, it was held as under:-
"16......'26. It can be stated without any fear of contradiction that corruption is not to be judged by Page 16 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT degree, for corruption mothers disorder, destroys societal will to progress, accelerates undeserved ambitions, kills the conscience, jettisons the glory of the institutions, paralyses the economic health of a country, corrodes the sense of civility and mars the marrows of governance.'
17. In Subramanian Swamy v. Manmohan Singh and Another (2012) 3 SCC 64, the Supreme Court held as under:-
"68. Today, corruption in our country not only poses a grave danger to the concept of constitutional governance, it also threatens the very foundation of Indian democracy and the Rule of Law. The magnitude of corruption in our public life is incompatible with the concept of a socialist, secular democratic republic. It cannot be disputed that where corruption begins all rights end. Corruption devalues human rights, chokes development and undermines justice, liberty, equality, fraternity which are the core values in our preambular vision. Therefore, the duty of the Court is that any anti-corruption law has to be interpreted and worked out in such a fashion as to strengthen the fight against corruption...."
18. In K.C. Sareen v. C.B.I., Chandigarh (2001)6 SCC 584, the Supreme Court observed thus:-
"12. Corruption by public servants has now reached a monstrous dimension in India. Its tentacles have started grappling even the institutions created for the protection Page 17 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT of the republic. Unless those tentacles are intercepted and impeded from gripping the normal and orderly functioning of the public offices, through strong legislative, executive as well as judicial exercises the corrupt public servants could even paralyse the functioning of such institutions and thereby hinder the democratic polity...."
19. While approving the judgment of Subramanian Swamy v. Director, Central Bureau of Investigation and Anr., (2014)8 SCC 682, rendered by another Constitution Bench in Manoj Narula's case, a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court, dealing with rampant corruption, observed as under:-
"17. Recently, in Subramanian Swamy v. CBI (2014) 8 SCC 682, the Constitution Bench, speaking through R.M. Lodha, C.J., while declaring Section 6-A of the Delhi Special Police Establishment Act, 1946, which was inserted by Act 45 of 2003, as unconstitutional, has opined that: (SCC pp. 725-26, para 59) "59. It seems to us that classification which is made in Section 6-A on the basis of status in the government service is not permissible under Article 14 as it defeats the purpose of finding prima facie truth into the allegations of graft, which amount to an offence under the PC Act, 1988. Can there be sound differentiation between corrupt public servants based on their status? Surely not, because irrespective of their status or Page 18 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT position, corrupt public servants are corrupters of public power. The corrupt public servants, whether high or low, are birds of the same feather and must be confronted with the process of investigation and inquiry equally. Based on the position or status in service, no distinction can be made between public servants against whom there are allegations amounting to an offence under the PC Act, 1988."
And thereafter, the larger Bench further said: (SCC p. 726, para 60) "60. Corruption is an enemy of the nation and tracking down corrupt public servants and punishing such persons is a necessary mandate of the PC Act, 1988. It is difficult to justify the classification which has been made in Section 6-A because the goal of law in the PC Act, 1988 is to meet corruption cases with a very strong hand and all public servants are warned through such a legislative measure that corrupt public servants have to face very serious consequences."
And again: (SCC pp. 730-31, paras 71-72) "71. Office of public power cannot be the workshop of personal gain. The probity in public life is of great importance. How can two public servants against whom there are allegations of corruption of graft or bribe-taking or criminal misconduct under the PC Act, 1988 can be made Page 19 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT to be treated differently because one happens to be a junior officer and the other, a senior decision maker.
72. Corruption is an enemy of nation and tracking down corrupt public servant, howsoever high he may be, and punishing such person is a necessary mandate under the PC Act, 1988. The status or position of public servant does not qualify such public servant from exemption from equal treatment. The decision-making power does not segregate corrupt officers into two classes as they are common crime- doers and have to be tracked down by the same process of inquiry and investigation."
18. From the aforesaid authorities, it is clear as noonday that corruption has the potentiality to destroy many a progressive aspect and it has acted as the formidable enemy of the nation."
20. In Neera Yadav v. Central Bureau of Investigation, (2017)8 SCC 757, the Supreme Court observed thus :
"59. Every country feels a constant longing for good governance, righteous use of power and transparency in administration. Corruption is no longer a moral issue as it is linked with the search of wholesome governance and the society's need for re-assurance that the system functions fairly, free from corruption and nepotism. Corruption has spread its tentacles almost on all the key areas of the State Page 20 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT and it is an impediment to the growth of investment and development of the country. If the conduct of administrative authorities is righteous and duties are performed in good faith with the vigilance and awareness that they are public trustees of people's rights, the issue of lack of accountability would themselves fade into insignificance.
60. To state the ubiquity of corruption, we may refer to the oft-quoted words of Kautilya, which reads as under:-
"Just as it is impossible not to taste the honey or the poison that finds itself at the tip of the tongue, so it is impossible for a government servant not to eat up, at least, a bit of the king's revenue. Just as fish moving under water cannot possibly be found out either as drinking or not drinking water, so government servants employed in the government work cannot be found out (while) taking money (for themselves).
It is possible to mark the movements of birds flying high up in the sky; but not so is it possible to ascertain the movement of government servants of hidden purpose."
[Ref: Kautilya's Arthasastra by R. Shamasastry, Second Edition, Page 77] As pointed out by Paul H. Douglas in his book on "Ethics of Government", "corruption was rife in British public life till a Page 21 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT hundred years ago and in USA till the beginning of this century. Nor can it be claimed that it has been altogether eliminated anywhere."
(Ref: Santhanam Committee Report, 1962: Para 2.3).
61. Tackling corruption is going to be a priority task for the Government. The Government has been making constant efforts to deal with the problem of corruption. However, the constant legislative reforms and strict judicial actions have still not been able to completely uproot the deeply rooted evil of corruption. This is the area where the Government needs to be seen taking unrelenting, stern and uncompromising steps. Leaders should think of introducing good and effective leadership at the helm of affairs; only then benefits of liberalization and various programmes, welfare schemes and programmes would reach the masses. Lack of awareness and supine attitude of the public has all along been found to be to the advantage of the corrupt. Due to the uncontrolled spread of consumerism and fall in moral values, corruption has taken deep roots in the society. What is needed is a re- awakening and recommitment to the basic values of tradition rooted in ancient and external wisdom. Unless people rise against bribery and corruption, society can never be rid of this disease. The people can collectively put off this evil by resisting corruption by any person, howsoever high he or she may be."
21. In view of the aforesaid discussion, this application fails and is hereby rejected. Ad-interim protection earlier granted Page 22 of 23 R/CR.MA/9278/2018 JUDGMENT stands vacated forthwith.
22. At this stage, the learned senior counsel made a request that the interim protection earlier granted may be extended for some time. Having regard to the nature of the allegations, I am not inclined to extend the interim protection.
23. Let the investigation proceed further in accordance with law.
(J.B.PARDIWALA, J.) /MOINUDDIN Page 23 of 23