Gauhati High Court
Shri Ranjit Kumar Saha & Anr vs The Union Of India & 7 Ors on 5 May, 2017
Author: Manojit Bhuyan
Bench: Manojit Bhuyan
IA (Civil) No.1216 of 2017
in WA No.51 of 2017
BEFORE
HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR. AJIT SINGH
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE MANOJIT BHUYAN
5.5.2017
(Ajit Singh, C.J.)
Mr.KN Choudhury, learned senior counsel, assisted by Mr. R Mazumdar,
learned counsel for the applicants.
Mr. SC Keyal, learned Assistant Solicitor General of India, assisted by Mr.M
Phukan, learned counsel for the respondents.
Heard on I.A (Civil) No.1216/2017, which is an application for, essentially, staying the proceedings of General Assam Rifles Court, pending against the applicants, till the final decision of the Writ Appeal.
Applicant No.1 - Ranjit Kumar Saha and Applicant No.2 - Subrata Deb are Subedar and Naib Subedar (Building and Roads) in the Assam Rifles. Applicant No.1 has been charge-sheeted for attempting to accept Rs.20 lacs as gratification on 4.8.2014, whereas Applicant No.2 has been charge-sheeted for accepting gratification of Rs.1,03,000/- on 11.8.2014 from one Shri C.C. Mathew, a Contractor of the Assam Rifles. The charges framed against them are under Sections 49 and 55 of the Assam Rifles Act, 2006, punishable under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. And both of them are being tried in the General Assam Rifles Court and as many as 9 witnesses, till now, have been examined and only one prosecution witness remains to be examined, for which, date is fixed on 11.5.2017.
The applicants challenged the proceedings of General Assam Rifles Court by filing separate WP(C) 7950/2016 and WP(C)7963/2016 on the ground that it has no jurisdiction and that they can be tried only by a Special Judge appointed under Section 3 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The learned Single Judge, by the impugned common order dated 10.2.2017, has allowed the writ petitions against which the Union of India has filed WA No.51/2017, which has been admitted by us, vide order dated 1.3.2017. While admitting the writ appeal, we Page 1 of 2 have also stayed the operation of order dated 10.2.2017 passed by the learned Single Judge. In the result, proceedings in the Court of General Assam Rifles have been allowed to continue.
The applicants have, therefore, filed the present application for staying the proceedings of the General Assam Rifles Court, till the final decision of writ appeal. The applicants have also placed reliance on a decision of the Supreme Court in Shree Chamundi Mopeds Ltd v. Church of South India Trust Association CSI Cinod Secretariat, Madras, (1992) 3 SCC 1. The Union of India, in its reply, has vehemently opposed the prayer for stay.
The record reveals that applicants are being prosecuted on serious charges of corruption in the General Assam Rifles Court. The trial is virtually at the fag end. It has repeatedly been held by the Supreme Court that in the cases of corruption, the Court should refrain from staying the proceedings. We, therefore, reject the application, but with an observation that final decision of the proceedings in the General Assam Rifles Court shall be subject to final judgment of this Court in WA No.51/2017. The case of Shree Chamundi Mopeds Ltd (supra) deals with Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Act, 1985 and not a corruption matter like the present one. It, therefore, does not help the applicants.
The application is dismissed.
JUDGE CHIEF JUSTICE
Skd
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