Holding

The Supreme Court upheld the conviction, finding that the demand and acceptance of the bribe were duly proved.

Summary

The complainant, A. Alexander, alleged that the site engineer V. Kannan demanded a bribe of Rs 5,000 to clear a pending railway contract bill. A trap was arranged by the CBI, with independent witnesses and forensic tests (phenolphthalein and sodium carbonate) confirming the presence of the money on Kannan's hands. Kannan claimed the money was repayment for a two‑wheeler purchase, not a bribe. The trial court convicted him under sections 7 and 13(1)(d) read with 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1998; the High Court affirmed the conviction, reducing the sentence. On appeal, the Supreme Court held that the prosecution had satisfactorily proved both demand and acceptance of the bribe, rejected the defence, and dismissed the appeal.

Issues considered

Whether the prosecution proved both the demand and acceptance of a bribe under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1998.
Whether the defence of repayment for a vehicle purchase can negate the charge of corruption.
Whether the evidence, including independent witness testimony and forensic tests, is sufficient to sustain conviction.

Legislation cited

Code of Criminal Procedures. 313
Prevention of Corruption Act, 1998s. 13(1)(d), s. 13(2), s. 7

Subjects

Prevention of Corruption Actbribe demandbribe acceptancetrap operationforensic evidenceindependent witnessconvictionappeal

Judgment

(2009] 13 (ADDL.) S.C.R. 540

A V. KANNAN
v.
STATE REP. BY INSPECTOR OF POLICE ·
(Criminal Appeal No. 1590 of 2009)

AUGUST 24, 2009
B
[DALVEER BHANDARI AND P. SATHASIVAM, JJ.]

Prevention of Corruption Act, 1998: s. 7, s. 13(1)(d) r. w.
s. 13(2) - Conviction under, by courts below - Interference with
c - Held: Not called for - Demand and acceptance of bribe
amount proved by prosecution - Independent witness
corroborated the ·evidence of complainant - Courts below
were right in rejecting the defence version.
State of U.P. v. Dr. G.K. Ghosh (1984) 1 SCC 254, relied
D on.
Subhash Parbat Sonvane v. State of Gujarat (2002) 5
sec 86, distinguished.
Case Law Reference:
E (1984) 1 sec 254. relied on Para 20
(2002) 5 SCC 86 distinguished Para 16
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Criminal Appeal
No. 1590 of 2009.
F From the Judgment & Order dated 4.7.2008 of the High
Court of Madras in Criminal Appeal No. 664 of 2002.
Altaf Ahmed; S. Thananjayan for the Appellant.
T.V. Ratnam, M. Chandra Shekhar, B.K. Prasad for the
G Respondent.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by .,., "
'
DALVEER BHANDARI, J. 1. Leave granted.

H 540
V. KANNAN v. STATE REP. BY INSPECTOR OF 541
POLICE [DALVEER BHANDARI, J.]

...... 2. This appeal is directed against the judgment of the High A
-+
Court of Madras dated 4.7.2008 delivered in Criminal Appeal
No.664 of 2002.
3. The brief facts which are necessary to dispose of this
appeal are recapitulated as under.
B
4. The complainant, A. Alexander, PW1 was the proprietor
of M/s. OLOHV Engineering Services and the company was
doing contract work for the Railways. The company had
completed the contract work for Rs.1 crore from 1993 to 1997.
According to the prevalent rules, the bills could be cleared only c
after the signature of the 'Site Engineer' in the measurement
book. The contract work was completed in the year 1997 and
there was a balance of Rs.9 lacs due to the complainant PW1.
5. The appellant was the Site Engineer during the relevant
period and he had to verify the measurements and make entry D
> in the measurement book. The appellant informed that the
" complainant PW1 had to return the unused materials to the
Railway department. The appellant demanded a bribe amount
of Rs.5000/- from the complainant PW1 at 9.30 am on
1.4.1998 to clear the final bill. The appellant also informed that E
the bribe amount be paid during the lunch hour on that date.
The complainant PW1 was not willing to give the bribe amount
and consequently at about 10.30 a.m. on 1.4.1998 he filed a
~· report to the Deputy Superintendent of Police, CBI, Chennai.
The report was handed over to Prem Anand, Inspector of Police
F
by the Deputy Superintendent of Police and at about 11.30 a.m.
the above Inspector introduced the independent witnesses
Balachander and Prakash. The complainant PW1 handed over
the currency notes of Rs.5000/- to the Inspector and the
Inspector demor.strated the Phenolphthalein test in the
G
presence of the independent witnesses. Subsequently, the
Inspector prepared the entrustment mahazar and the tainted
currency notes were placed in the shirt pocket of the
complainant PW1 and the Inspector informed that the above
amount should be given to the appellant on demand. The
H
542 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2009r13 (ADDL.) S.C.R.

A complainant PW1 was told that after giving the bribe amount ..
on demand he should give a signal by wiping his face with
·handkerchief.
6. The above witnesses and the trap team were sent to
the office of the appellant at about 1.00 pm. The complainant
B PW1and Balachander PW2 also went to the room of the
appellant and he (the appellant) took them to the room of the
Deputy General Manager. The appellant demanded the bribe
amount and the complainant handed over the bribe amount to
the appellant. The appellant started counting the currency notes
c and Balachander PW2 went out and gave the pre-arranged
signal to the trap team. Immediately thereafter, the Inspector
entered into the room and introduced himself.
7.The Sodium Carbonate test was conducted on both the
hands of the appellant and there was a colour change in the
D
solution. The above solutions were preserved in separate
bottles and sealed. The appellant handed over the bribe amount
to the complainant PW1 and the serial numbers were verified
with the entrustment mahazar and they tallied.

E 8. The prosecution has examined seven witnesses.
Balachander PW2 is an independent witness and his testimony
is fully corroborated by the evidence of the complainant PW1.
Prem Anand, Inspector, CBI, PW3 arranged the trap against
the appellant in presence of the independent witnesses. Smt.
Kasturi Bai PW6 was working as a Scientific Assistant Grade-
F
I at the Forensic Science Department, Chennai. She stated in
her report that she had received two solution bottles. On
examination, the liquid contained Phenolphthalein and Sodium
Carbonate.

G 9. The appellant in his statement. under section 313 of the
Code of Criminal Procedure (for short, the Cr.P.C.) stated that
as a Site Engineer, his duties were to supervise the erection
of girders at the work site of MRTS Project at Mylapore, to
monitor the safety parameters of both men and materials at the
H site, to inspect whether the contract works are being carried
V. KANNAN v. STATE REP. BY INSPECTOR OF 543
POLICE [DALVEER BHANDARI, J.]
out according to the specifications and also management of A
stores under direct supervision of the Project Manager (Deputy
General Manager).
10. The appellant in his defence stated that he had
purchased a second hand two-wheeler TVS Champ No.TN-21-
6743 in 1997 from A. Alexander PW1 for a sum of Rs.7000/- B
. The appellant had already paid a sum of Rs.5000/- initially and
the balance amount of Rs.2000/- was to be paid after he was
4 satisfied with the vehicle. Since the vehicle had mechanical
defects, therefore, the appellant had asked Alexander PW1 to
fake back the vehicle and return the money (Rs.5000/-). The c
appellant further stated that at 1.00 p.m. on 1.4.1998, when he
was working at the site at Mylapore, at that time, Alexander
PW1 came to return the amount given by him towards the
purchase two wheeler scooter and Alexander PW1 told him that
his assistant Jayakanthan will handover the money to him. D
> Thereafter, he along with the complainant went into the room
of the Deputy General Manager Vaidyanathan to discuss about
the bills and at ~hat time Vaidyanathan had gone to the General
Manager's room to attend a STD call. He handed over the
money by Jayakanthan. The appellant stated that at that time E
he immediately asked his kalasi Govindan and gave him the
table key and asked him to take the vehicle key from the table
drawer and handover the vehicle to Jayakanthan. At that time
Vaidyanathan came back after attending the telephone call and
all of them went back to his room and resumed the discussion. F
The appellant further stated that when Vaidyanathan asked him
what that money was, he told him that it was given to him by
Alexander PW1 through Jayakanthan as he was returning the
two wheeler TVS Champ purchased from Alexander PW1 and
that he had told Govindan to handover the vehicle to
G
Jayakanthan.
11. The appellant also stated that when the CBI people
came and told him to raise his hands, he told Prem Anand PW3
that the money in his hand was for the vehicle transaction money
and not the bribe money. The appellant further stated that he H
544 SUPREME COURT REPORTS (2009] 13 {ADDL.) S.C.R. '.

A did not receive any bribe amount. He stated that it was not within
his power to prepare the bills for the complainant PW1 as the
matter was being dealt with at the Deputy General Manager
level. The appellant also submitted that the complainant PW1
had deliberately filed this false complaint against him to forestall
B · any · action by the Indian Railway Construction Company
(IRCON) as more than Rs.16 lakhs could be deducted from his
bills. ·
12. The Trial Court, after a detailed discussion, rejected
the defence version of the appellant. The Trial Court held the
· C appellant guilty of ,the offences under section 7 and 13{1){d) ·
read with section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act,
1998 (for short, the Act) and sentenced the appellant to undergo
one year rigorous imprisonment for the charge under section
7 of the Act and fine of Rs.1000/- and in default to undergo
D. further six months rigorous imprisonment. Two years' sentence
was given along with a fine 'of Rs.2000/- for the charge under
section 13(1)(d) "read with section_13(2) of the Act and in default
of payment of fine; one year rigorous imprisonment was given.
Both the sentences were ordered to run concurrently and any
E period of imprisonment already undergone was ordered to be
set off under section 428 of the Cr.P.C.
13. On appeal, the High Court re-examined the matter and
confirmed the findings of the trial_court, but reduced the
sentence of two years into one year for the offence under
. F section 13(1)(d) read with section 13(2) of the Act.
-14. The appellant aggrieved by the said judgment has
preferred this appeal. ·· ·
15. We have heard learned counsel for the parties. Mr.
G Altaf Ahmed, learned senior counsel appearing for the
appellarit. submitted that in corruption cases demand and · --
acceptance are two most important aspects and both, the
demand as well as the acceptan~e. must be proved .bY the
prosecution. In absence of clear evidence of demand and
H acceptance, the conviction in corruption cases cannot be
V. KANNAN v. STATE REP. BY INSPECTOR OF 545
POLICE [DALVEER BHAND~RI, J .]
sustained. A
16. Reliance was placed on the case ot'Subash Parbat
Sonvane v. State,'of Gujarat (2002) 5 SCC 86. In this case
there was no statement of any prosecution witness by which
the demand of any amount from the complainant could be
In
proved.- this cas,e when the appellant asked the complainant 8
to come in the evening and while the accused was going
towards the toilet, the complainant followed him ·and gave him
-something from his pocket which the appellant put in his pocket.
The Court took the view that it could not be inferred that the
appellant had demanded any amount from the complainant or C
-that he had _obtained the same.
_ 17. There is no quarrel with the proposition of law that in
corruption cases, the prosecution must prove both the demand
and acceptance of the bribe amount, but the facts of the present
0
. . case are altogether different and the aforementioned judgment
is of no assistance to the appellant in the present case. - .
-18. In the instant case, the appellant had clearly demanded
the amount from PW1. The relevant portion of the statement of
the complainant' reads as under: ·· - -· E
•...... He is the Proprietor of OLOHV Engineering Services
and the above company was doing contr~ct work for the
Railways. From the year 1993 to 1997, he has completed
-~ the contract work for Rs.1 Crore. The Site Engineer will
sign in the measurement book. The payment will be made . F
_by cheque. The contract work was completed in the year
1997 and there was a balance of Rs.9 lacs due to P.W.1.
During that period, the accused was the Site Engineer and _
he has to verify the measurement and entry to be made in
the measurement book. The accused informed that P.WJ G
has to return the unused materials . to the Railway
Department. On 1.4.98, at about 9.30 a.m. the accused
demanded a bribe amount of Rs.50001- to be paid to
clear the final bill......"
H
546 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [2009] 13 (ADDL.) S.C.R.

A 19. According to Balachander PW2, the money was ·~ ......
handed over to the appellant in his presence. Immediately after
the bribe amount was handed over to the appellant, he started
counting the currency notes. At that time Balachander PW2
came _out and gave the pre-arranged signal. Soon thereafter
B the Inspector and the trap team entered into the above room
ahd the appellant was arrested. The Sodium Carbonate
solution was prepared and Phenolphthalein test was conducted
on both the hands of the appellant separately. There was colour
change in the solution and they were preserved in separate
c bottles.
20. Balachander PW2 is an independent witness and he
has corroborated the evidence of the complainant PW1.
Therefore, in the facts and circumstances of this case, it is
difficult to accept the submission of the appellant that there was
D no demand and acceptance of the bribe amount. Both the Trial
Court and the High Court rejected the defence version of the -l
appellant.
;..
21. This Court in State of U.P. v. Dr. G. K. Ghosh (1984)
1 sec 2~4 has aptly observed that by and large a citizen is
E somewhat reluctant, rather than anxious, to complain to the
Vigilance Department to have a trap arranged even if illegal
gratification is demanded by a Government official. The relevant
para 9 at page 261 of the judgment reads as under:
~·
"9. By and large a citizen is somewhat reluctant, rather than
F
anxious; to complain to the Vigilance Department and to
have a trap arranged even if illegal gratification is
demanded by a Government servant. There are numerous
reasons for the reluctance. In the first place, he has to
make a number of visits to the office of Vigilance
G Department and to wait for a number of officers. He has
to provide his own currency notes for arranging a trap. He
has to comply with several formalities and sign several
statements. He has to accompany the officers and
participants of the raiding party and play the main role. All
H the while he has to remain away from his job, work, or
V. KANNAN v. STATE REP. BY INSPECTOR OF 547
POLICE [DALVEER BHANDARI, J.]
avocation. He has to sacrifice his time and effort whilst A
doing so. Thereafter, he has to attend the court at the time
of the trial from day to day. He has to withstand the
searching cross-examination by the defence counsel as if
he himself is guilty of some fault. In the result, a citizen who
has been harassed by a Government officer, has to face a
all these hazards. And if the explanation offered by the
accused is accepted by the court, he has to face the
humiliation of being considered as a person who tried to
. falsely implicate a Government servant, not to speak of
facing · the wrath of the Government servants of the c
department concerned, in his future dealings with the
department. No one would therefore be too keen or too
anxious to face such an ordeal. Ordinarily, it is only when
a citizen feels oppressed by a feeling of being wronged
and finds the situation to be beyond endurance, that he
0
adopts the course of approaching the Vigilance
Department for laying a trap. His evidence cannot therefore
be easily or lightly brushed aside. Of course, it cannot be
gainsaid that it does not mean that the court should be
oblivious of the need for caution and circumspection
bearing in mind that o_ne can conceive of cases where an E
honest or strict Government official may be falsely
implicated by a vindictive person to whose demand, for
showing favours, or for according a special treatment by
giving a go-bye to the rules, the officiai refuses to yield."
F
22. We have heard the learned counsel for the parties at
length and carefully perused the impugned judgment of the High
Court as well as the judgment of the Principal Special Judge
for the CBI Cases. We have also carefully examined the
evidence and documents on record. The view which has been G
taken by the courts below seems to be the correct view. In the
facts and circumstances of the case, no interference is called
for. The appeal being devoid of any merit is accordingly
dismissed.
D.G. Appeal dismissed. H