‘Accused can only be convicted if demand, receipt of bribe proved’

Cuttack: The Orissa high court has held that an accused cannot be convicted for taking bribe merely on the presumption of demand and acceptance of illegal gratification. The conviction can be sustained only if demand and acceptance of bribe are proved, it added.
The ruling came while passing acquittal orders in six separate cases in which government servants were convicted of taking bribe by special vigilance courts between 10 and 14 years ago.
The acquittal orders were passed on six criminal appeals on February 5 after taking note that the trial court had in all cases found the accused to have neither demanded nor accepted bribe. Since the appellants were on bail upon appeal, the high court discharged their bail bonds.
In one order, the single-judge bench of Justice Gourishankar Satapathy said, “The court has found that the trial court has erroneously appreciated the evidence on record and convicted the appellant (convict) without considering the fact that the demand and acceptance of bribe by the accused (convict) has not been established beyond all reasonable doubt and, therefore, the necessary consequence is that the guilt of the appellant (convict) is found to have not been established by the prosecution beyond all reasonable doubts and he is, therefore, entitled to an acquittal of the charge.” In another order, Justice Satapathy observed, “In a case of demand and acceptance of bribe by the accused, the prosecution is expected to lead evidence about the prior and subsequent demand of bribe and followed by acceptance of the same as illegal gratification by the public servant.”
He observed, “Mere acceptance/recovery of currency notes alleged to be illegal gratification without the proof of demand ipso facto would thus not be sufficient to establish the charge against the appellant and therefore, the conviction of the appellant in this case appears to be unsustainable in the eye of law.”