33-year-old ₹300 bribe case: Jharkhand HC upholds conviction, cuts sentence
SUMAN K SHRIVASTAVA Ranchi, August 25: The Jharkhand High Court has upheld the conviction of a former BCCL clerk in a 33-year-old…
SUMAN K SHRIVASTAVA
Ranchi, August 25: The Jharkhand High Court has upheld the conviction of a former BCCL clerk in a 33-year-old ₹300 bribery case but reduced his sentence to the period of imprisonment already undergone.
Justice Pradeep Kumar Srivastava dismissed the criminal appeal filed by Samir Kumar Choudhary, who had challenged his conviction in a 1993 CBI bribery case involving a demand for ₹300 to process a former colliery worker’s Provident Fund (PF) arrears claim.
The judgment was pronounced on August 20.
₹300 Bribe for Processing PF Arrears
The case dates back to March 1993, when Ramdhari Harijan, a former minor loader at Basudeopur Colliery, BCCL, Dhanbad, approached the CBI alleging that Choudhary, then working as a Fund Clerk, had demanded ₹300 to process and forward his application for payment of PF arrears.
The CBI verified the allegation and registered RC Case No. 4(A)/1993(D). A trap was subsequently laid at the Basudeopur Colliery office.
According to the prosecution, Harijan handed over ₹300 in tainted currency notes to Choudhary after the alleged demand. The money was later recovered from the drawer of the accused’s office table.
The CBI also conducted hand-wash tests, and the solutions were sent to the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) for examination. The CFSL report confirmed the presence of phenolphthalein and sodium carbonate.
Defence Challenges Bribe Evidence
During the appeal, Choudhary’s counsel argued that the prosecution witnesses had made contradictory statements and that the alleged bribe money was recovered from a table drawer rather than from his person.
The defence also questioned the sanction for prosecution and argued that the prosecution had failed to establish the essential elements of demand, acceptance and recovery of illegal gratification.
The CBI opposed the appeal, maintaining that the evidence clearly established the demand and acceptance of the bribe and that the appellant had failed to rebut the statutory presumption under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
High Court Upholds Conviction
After examining the evidence, the High Court found no merit in the appeal.
The Court held that the contradictions pointed out by the defence were not substantive enough to affect the core of the prosecution case. It found that the oral and documentary evidence established that Choudhary had demanded and accepted illegal gratification for processing the complainant’s PF arrears application.
The trial court had convicted Choudhary under Sections 7 and 13(1)(d) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
33 Years Later, Jail Term Reduced
While upholding the conviction, the High Court took a lenient view on the sentence, considering the extraordinary delay since the offence.
The Court noted that the case dated back to 1993 and that Choudhary had undergone the ordeal of trial for about three decades. It also noted that he had no previous criminal antecedents and had already spent one month and one day in custody.
The Court further took into account the ₹2,000 fine deposited by him and the additional ₹5,000 he had deposited as a condition for confirmation of his provisional bail.
The High Court concluded that he had been sufficiently punished and reduced the sentence to the period of imprisonment already undergone, along with the fine and the ₹5,000 conditional amount already deposited.
Appeal Dismissed, Sentence Modified
The High Court dismissed the appeal on the merits but modified the sentence.
As Choudhary was already on bail, the Court discharged him from the liabilities of his bail bond and also discharged the sureties.
The Court directed that a copy of the judgment, along with the trial court records, be sent to the concerned court for information and necessary action.
