1-yr RI, 17 yrs later for ladoos as bribe

Ruling in almost two-year-old case, though the Supreme Court has given partial relief to two government employees it has upheld their conviction for accepting a Rs75 and a packet of sweets as bribe.

Rs75 and a small packet of ladoos was all that a poor farmer could arrange to bribe two small-time officials of a government hospital in Tonk, who would not issue the discharge ticket for his father after treatment in 1994.

However, before bribing Kalyan Mal and Mukut Bihari at Shahadat hospital, one Rafiq had informed the anti-corruption bureau too. Kalyan put the cash in his trousers’ pocket, while Mukut could not resist the temptation of ladoos and the duo were caught red-handed with their mouth full of sweets. Both of them were sacked.

After seven years, the trial court imposed a two-year sentence on the two, which was affirmed by the high court in 2011, following which, they appealed in the apex court.

The top court too upheld the conviction under Prevention of Corruption Act. But since the incident was nearly two-decades-old and the duo had undergone considerable trauma during the litigation, the court reduced the punishment to one year RI. The top court granted relief on compassionate grounds saying they are, without job, already underwent six months of imprisonment and are ill.

A bench of justices BS Chauhan and Dipak Misra said acceptance of an accused person’s submission that the complainant’s version required corroboration in all circumstances, in abstract would encourage the bribe taker to receive illegal gratification in privacy and then insist for corroboration in case he or she faces trial under the corruption prevention law.