JUDGMENT

BHAGWATI J.:—The appellant and one Ram Narain were tried by the Sessions Judge, Kotal for offences under Section 161 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 5 (1) (d) read with Section 5 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947. The appellant was, at the material time a clerk in the Land Record Office entrusted with the duty of furnishing certified copies of entries in land records while Ram Narain was a peon working in that office. The charge against the appellant and Ram Narain was that on or about 31st March, 1967, the appellant obtained through Ram Narain by corrupt and illegal means a sum of Rs. 10/- from Dhanna Lal as gratification, other than legal remuneration, as a motive or reward for issuing early copy of entries in the land records relating to the land of Dhanna Lal for Samvat years 2010 to 2013. The appellant and Ram Narain were both convicted by the learned Sessions Judge and each of them was sentenced to suffer one year rigorous imprisonment and to pay a fine of Rs. 100/- or in default of payment of fine to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a further period of one month. The appellant and Ram Narain both preferred an appeal in the High Court of Rajasthan against the Order of conviction and sentence recorded against them, but the appeal substantially failed and the conviction of the appellant and Ram Narain was maintained with only a slight modification in the case of Ram Narain whose conviction was limited only to Section 5 (1) (d) read with Section 5 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947. The sentence imposed on the appellant and Ram Narain was, however reduced, the substantive sentence of imprisonment being brought down to three months rigorous imprisonment and the sentence of fine being limited only to Rs. 50/- in case of each of them. The appellant thereupon preferred the present appeal with special leave obtained from this Court.

2. Before we deal with the contentions raised on behalf of the appellant in support of the appeal, it would be convenient to state briefly the facts giving rise to the prosecution against the appellant. Dhanna Lal, who was an agriculturist in a village situate in Kotal District, was in need of a certified copy of entries relating to his land as he was required to produce them for the purpose of obtaining Takavi loan from a bank. He, therefore, came down to Kotal in the evening of 28th March, 1967 and he brought with him, presumably for the purpose of assisting him as he was a stranger in Kotal. one Ram Nath, who was Panch of his village. Ram Nath and Dhanna Lal went to the Collectorate in the morning of 29th March, 1967 and there Dhanna Lal preferred an application for obtaining a certified copy of the entries to the Sadar Kanungo, but he was asked to submit the application to the clerk who was incharge of preparing certified copies. Dhanna Lal thereupon took the application to the appellant and after affixing a Court fee stamp of Rs. 2/- which represented the court fee for urgent copy, submitted it to the appellant. The appellant had his table in a room in which there were many other clerks doing work of the land record office. The appellant, after taking the application from Dhanna Lal, asked him to sit outside 741 where-upon Dhanna Lal and Ram Nath sat in the varanda outside the room. Sometime thereafter Ram Narain, who was a peon in the office, came to Dhanna Lal and asked him what was the matter for which he had come. Dhanna Lal told Ram Narain that he had come to obtain certified copy of entries in the land Record. Ram Narain stated that without some gratification no copies were issued in the office. Dhanna Lal thereupon inquired as to how much amount would have to be paid, on which Ram Narain went inside and after sometime returned and said that about Rs. 25/- would have to be paid since Dhanna Lal wanted copy for Samvat 2010 to 2013. Dhanna Lal found this amount rather high, whereupon Ram Narain once again went inside the room and coming out after a while