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1. By judgment and order dated 26/6/2007, MCOCA Special Court, Pune, discharged Pradeep Bhalchandra AJN Savant, accused 65 (for convenience, "A-65") from MCOCA Special Case No.2 of 2003 commonly known as Telgi Stamp Case of Bund Garden Police Station, Pune.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (for short, "the CBI") preferred the present appeal under Section 12 of the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act, 1999 (for short, "the MCOCA") against the said order being aggrieved by the discharge of A-55. The Division Bench of this court (Dr. Radhakrishnan, J. and Smt. Roshan Dalvi, J.) heard this appeal and delivered separate judgments on 27/2/2008. While Justice Dr. Radhakrishnan concurred with the MCOCA Special Court and confirmed the discharge of A-65, Justice Smt. Roshan Dalvi set aside the discharge order and directed the MCOCA Special Court to frame charge against A-65 and proceed with the trial in accordance with law.

2. One Vashitha Rambhau Andhale, original accused 55 (for short, "A-55") in the said case was also discharged by the Special Court vide a separate order of the same AJN date i.e. 26/6/2007. Being aggrieved by the said order, CBI preferred Appeal No.763 of 2007 to this court. That appeal was also heard by the same Division Bench of this court (Dr. Radhakrishnan and Smt. Roshan Dalvi, JJ.) In that case also, the Division Bench delivered separate judgments on 27/2/2008. While Justice Dr. Radhakrishnan concurred with the MCOCA Special Court and confirmed the discharge of A-55, Justice Roshan Dalvi set aside the discharge order and directed the MCOCA Special Court to frame charge against A-55 and proceed in accordance with law.

5. It is necessary to begin with the facts of the case. It appears to be the prosecution case that on 7/6/2002, a Tata Indica car occupied by three persons was intercepted by Bund Garden Police, Pune, near S.T. Stand near Pune Railway Station. The search of the vehicle and the occupants revealed that the three occupants i.e. original accused 1 to 3 were possessing counterfeit Government Stamps and Stamp Papers. On these facts, FIR was registered at Bund Garden Police Station vide C.R. No.135 of 2002 under section 120(b), 255, 259, 260, 263(a) (b), 478m 472 and 474 of the Indian Penal Code (for short, "the IPC") read with section 34 of the IPC. Further investigation of this case resulted in massive recovery of Counterfeit Stamps and Stamp Papers as well as printing machinery and stationery worth crores of rupees. It appears that looking to the enormity of the offence and AJN the type of investigation required, the State of Maharashtra constituted a Special Investigation Team (for short, "the SIT") to be headed by DIG, Shri S.K. Jaiswal vide Government Resolution dated 2/11/2002. The provisions of the MCOCA were applied to this case. The SIT continued the investigation and from time to time filed charge sheets and supplementary charge sheets till the investigation was transferred to the CBI vide order dated 15/3/2004 in Civil Writ Petition No.522 of 2003 by the Supreme Court. The CBI scrutinized the role of all the accused persons and filed a composite charge sheet on 26/7/2005 which included R-1 herein i.e. A-65. The case is numbered as Special Case No.2 of 2003. Role and involvement of A-65 is described in the said charge-sheet in detail.

6. The proposed charge to which my attention is drawn by Mr. Thakare, inter alia, states that during the period from December, 1993 to January, 2003 at various places in Maharashtra, A-65 along with others entered into a AJN criminal conspiracy and/or was a member of a criminal conspiracy and was party to the continuing unlawful activities, carrying on various illegal acts in an organized manner as member of an Organized Crime Syndicate, which continued even after 21/2/1999 when the MCOCA came into force thus, bringing all unlawful activities of the Organized Crime Syndicate under its purview and these activities continued till January, 2003 by which time, it extended to other States. The proposed charge further states that A-65 and others, who were working as public servants rendered help and support to the Organized Crime Syndicate and they have dishonestly and intentionally prepared records in the manner, which they knew to be false with a view to diluting the enormity of the crime or to suppress the offence and they have also failed to ensure making of proper records with intention to save the members of the Organized Crime Syndicate from legal punishment. The proposed charge states that the said public servants which include A-65 intentionally omitted to apprehend such persons and rendered help AJN and support in commission of organized crime or abstained from taking lawful measures under the MCOCA with the knowledge that they will thereby cause loss to the national exchequer. The proposed charge thus states that A-65 along with others committed an offence under section 120-B of the IPC. The proposed charge further states that A-65 being a public servant did also resort to illegal acts and abetted the activities of the Organized Crime Syndicate and obtained several mobile phones for facilitating the communication with the members of the Organized Crime Syndicate for furthering its illegal activities. Such acts of A-65 are set out in the proposed charge. They are -