Judgement

P. B. GAJENDRAGADKAR J.: Are the Appellants S. Gangoli and P. R. Chaudhri (hereafter called appellants 1 and 2, respectively) public servants under S. 2 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947 (II of 1947) (hereafter called the Act)? That is the short question which arises for our decision in the present appeal. That question arises in this way.

2. Chaudhri had been posted as Assistant Permanent Way Inspector, Sultanpur, East Indian Railway, in March 1948 in the Lucknow E. I. R. Division. Gangoli was posted as Assistant Pay Clerk in the Lucknow E. I. R. Division during the same period. The case against the appellants was that they had committed an offence under S. 120B of the Indian Penal Code and Section 5(2) read with Ss. 5(1)(c) and 5(1)(d) of the Act. It appears that in accordance with the Pay Commission s Report a sum of Rs. 16,685 was entrusted to appellant No. 2 by the railway department to be disbursed among Class IV staff working under appellant No. 1. This payment had to be made in the presence of, and was to be attested by, appellant No. 1. According to the prosecution both the appellants had entered into a criminal conspiracy to misappropriate a part of the sa