IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
D. G. DESHPANDE, & SMT. NISHITA MHATRE, JJ.
Dr. Shashikant D. Karnik - Petitioner
Versus
State of Maharashtra - Respondent
CRIMINAL WRIT PETITION NO. 2509 OF 2006
Decided on : 17TH APRIL, 2007.
Fourth requirement of law though not specifically laid down in Section 102 of Cr PC is that before issuing orders of stopping the operation of account, notice is required to be given to the petitioner. If attachment order or any order of the aforesaid type is bound to effect adversely and seriously to the holder of the account then it was obligatory and necessary for the police to give him notice before doing that and in case the police apprehended that such a person like petitioner would, after receiving the notice, withdraw all the amount, they could have given notice to him and attached the accounts simultaneously.
Per: D.G. Deshpande, J:
1. Heard Counsel for the petitioner and the learned APP for the State.
2. This petition was earlier before the Bench of Ranjana Desai & D.B. Bhosale, JJ. Since they passed an order "Not before this court, as Hon’ble Smt. Justice R.P. Desai is a member", this Petition is assigned to us, by the Acting Chief Justice.
3. The prayer in this petition is to quash and set aside the order of freezing the Bank accounts and Bank lockers of the Petitioner and his family members by the Police officers in this case and to defreeze all the accounts at (Exhibit ’A’) and permit the petitioner and his family members to operate all those bank accounts as per Exhibit ’A’ and the bank lockers. As per affidavit of Rajendrasinh Govindsinh Pardeshi, Assistant Commissioner of police, attached to Anti Corruption Bureau, Mumbai, filed in reply to this petition, he has stated that C.R. No. 33/2002 was registered against the petitioner and others for committing mal practices pursuant to criminal conspiracy hatched for the benefit of unmerited candidates, who paid huge amounts for getting success in the MPSC (Main) Exam. 1999 for Recruitment of Asstt./Sales Tax Inspector / PSI. During investigation of that C.R., house search of the petitioner was conducted which resulted in seizure of incriminating documents revealing accumulation of huge assets by the petitioner in his name, in the name of his wife and children. This search was on 8.7.2002. On and from 6.9.2002 an open enquiry was initiated against the petitioner regarding possession of disproportionate assets by the Investigating Officer on C.R. No. 33/2002. This Investigating / Enquiry Officer completed the enquiry and submitted his final report as a result of which on 21.12.2005, C.R. No. 37 of 2005 under Section 13(1)(e) r/w. 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 and Section 109 of Indian Penal Code, was registered against the petitioner and his wife.
4. In the meantime i.e. in between 8.7.2002 to 6.9.2002 (as it appears from the wordings of the affidavit of ACP attached to Anti Corruption Bureau) the Investigating Officer gave a letter under Section 102 of the Cr.P.C. to stop operation of the bank accounts held in Allahabad Bank in the name of the petitioner and his family members:
(i) Shashikant Dattatraya Karnik S.B. A/c, No. 50717
(ii) Sharmila Shashikant Karnik S.B. A/c. No. 52539,
(iii) Shubhada Shashikant Karnik S.B. A/c. No. 4971
(iv) Shashikant Dattatraya Karnik PPF A/c. No. 3237
Union Bank of India,
(v) Sharmila Shashikant Karnik Saving & Pension A/c. No. 121975
Bank of Baroda.
5. However, it appears that subsequently all the accounts mentioned in Exhibit ’A’ to the petition were brought under those instructions or directions i.e. directions to the effect that the petitioner and his aforesaid relatives shall not be permitted to operate accounts. It is this action of the police / respondents, that is, being challenged in this petition.
6. It needs to be clarified that so far as the pension account of the petitioner and his wife are concerned, the petitioner himself has stated that the Special Court allowed the petitioner’s prayer and permitted him to operate those pension accounts.
7. The matter was heard by us on 9.4.2007. We passed an order on the basis of the statement made by the learned APP and permitted the petitioner to operate four accounts from out of all those accounts under Exhibit ’A’ to the petition, which accounts are as follows:
(i) Dr. S. D. Karnik Indian Bank, Mahim Branch A/c. No. 18699
(ii) Dr. Sharmila S. Karnik Bank of Baroda, Marine Drive Branch A/c. No. 12748
(iii) Mr. S. S. Karnik Bank of Baroda, Marine Drive Branch A/c. No. 13068
(iv) Mr. S. S. Karnik Bank of Baroda, Marine Drive Branch NRE A/c. No. 107913
8. In this background, this petition is filed challenging the order or direction or whatever that may be, because in the second affidavit filed by the same A.C.P. in this petition on 17.3.2007 in paragraph 4 it is stated that only letters
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