SC: Fix time-limit for graft cases

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The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Parliament to amend the Prevention of Corruption Act to make granting of sanction for prosecution mandatory in three months in graft cases.

The top court disapproved the delay of nearly sixteen months in deciding the plea for sanctioning the prosecution of former communications minister A. Raja in the 2G case by the Prime Minister and nearly 126 other cases of corruption. The CBI was not making any headway in the absence of sanction.

Laying down three-point guidelines to the legislature for disposing the cases of sanction by the competent authority, a bench of Justices G.S. Singhvi and A.K. Ganguly said, “The Parliament should consider the constitutional imperative of Article 14 enshrining the rule of law wherein ‘due process of law’ has been read into the introducing a time limit in section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 for its working in a reasonable manner.”

In this regard, the top court laid down the three-point guidelines to follow whenever the government brings the amendment Bill in the PC Act before it. The court said every proposal of sanction brought before the competent sanctioning authority must be decided within the upper limit of three months.

Where consultation is required with the attorney general or solicitor general in the Centre and advocate general in the state and in view of this decision is not possible in three months, then an extension of one more months be given to the competent authority.

But all request for consultation is to be sent in writing within the three months and a copy of the same to be sent to the prosecuting agency or the private complainant, who has sought the sanction to prosecute a public servant to intimate them about the further extension granted.

At the end of the extended period, if no decision is taken, the “sanction will be deemed to have been granted to the proposal for prosecution, and the prosecuting agency or the private complainant will proceed to file the chargesheet (by prosecuting agency) or complaint (by private complaint) in the court to commence the prosecution within 15 days of the expiry of the extended time limit.”

The top court said amendment in the PC Act on the issue of sanction has become necessary in view of several serious cases of corruption remaining pending for years with the probe agencies even after the completion of investigation due to want of sanction.

“Today, corruption in our country not only poses a grave danger to the concept of constitutional governance, it also threatens the very foundation of Indian democracy and the rule of law,” the top court reminded.