Can a citizen file a complaint for prosecuting a public servant under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, and if so does the authority that sanctions the prosecution of the public servant have to take a decision within the time specified in Vineet Narain v Union of India and the guidelines issued by the central government and the Central Vigilance Commission?
Allowing an appeal in Dr Subramanian Swamy v Dr Manmohan Singh and another, the Supreme Court held that neither the Corruption Act nor the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, bars a citizen from filing a complaint for prosecution of a public servant who is alleged to have committed an offence.
The court observed that the “grant or refusal of sanction is not a quasi-judicial function and the person for whose prosecution the sanction is sought is not required to be heard by the competent authority before it takes a decision in the matter”. It added that the competent authority is only required to see if the material produced by the complainant or the investigating agency shows that the official had committed an offence.
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Swamy had filed a civil writ petition before Delhi High Court for the issue of a mandamus to the prime minister of India to pass an order to sanction the prosecution of a former minister. Delhi High Court had dismissed the petition, holding that as the matter was still being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation, “it would not be in fitness of things” to issue a mandamus to the prime minister. This prompted Swamy to file an appeal before the apex court.
The judgment is significant as the Supreme Court held that denial of a timely decision on grant of sanction is a violation of the due process of law.
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The legislative and regulatory update is compiled by Nishith Desai Associates, a Mumbai-based law firm. The authors can be contacted at nishith@nishithdesai.com. Readers should not act on the basis of this information without seeking professional legal advice.
