The appellant herein was Special Grade Secretary of Mangalpady Grama Panchayath in Kasaragod District, in March, 2000. The VACB, Kasaragod registered a crime against him on the complaint of one Ismail, that the appellant demanded and accepted an amount of Rs.500/- as illegal gratification for making entries in the Building Tax Assessment Register of the Panchayath regarding his sister's newly constructed house. The house was constructed in 1999, and the standing committee had also decided to assign a number to the newly constructed house. Thereafter, an ownership certificate was also issued by the appellant herein on payment of the required building tax. It is alleged that when the complainant approached the appellant in April, 2001 for remitting the house tax, the appellant realised that the house number was not entered in the assessment register. The appellant told the complainant that building tax can be acceptable only after the house number is entered in the register, and for the said purpose, he demanded an amount of Rs.500/-. The demand was first made on 02.04.2001, when the complainant came to remit the house tax. When the appellant repeated the demand, the complain