Judgment

ALAGIRISWAMI, J. :- The appeal before it was disposed of by the Punjab and Haryana High Court solely on the ground that the sanction to prosecute the respondent was not given by the Governor. Since then this Court has decided in Shamsher Singh s case (19741 2 SCC 831 that the Governor need not look into any matter personally if the Rules of Business made under Article 166 empower any officer of the Government to deal with the matter. All the same Mr. Sanghi appearing on behalf of the respondent urges that the question whether there was a valid sanction to prosecute the respondent should be gone into by this Court. He urges that during the period when the sanction was given the Haryana State was under President s rule and therefore Art, 166 was not in force and the Governor himself would have had to see the case and sanction it, On the other hand it is stated on behalf of the appellants that this case had been seen by the Chief Minister earlier and he had sanctioned the prosecution and all that remained was a formal order embodying that decision and it was that order which had been signed by the Chief Secretary during the period when Haryana was under President s rule. There