JUDGMENT :

1. These criminal revision petitions under Section 397 read with Section 401 Cr.P.C. has been preferred against the order dated 01.11.2018 passed by the learned Special Judge, (Prevention of Corruption Act), Jodhpur in Criminal Regular Case No.35/2014, whereby the learned court below framed the charges against the accused-petitioners for the offences under Sections 13(1)(d) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act and under Section 120B IPC.

2. Brief facts of this case, as placed by learned counsel for the accused-petitioners, are that certain Councilors of Municipality, Jaisalmer submitted a complaint before the office of the concerned Anti Corruption Bureau, which was registered as complaint No.225/2006.

2.1 Upon the investigation made into the aforementioned complainant, it was found that one Laxmi Narayan Sharma, the then Lower Division Clerk, Municipality, Jaisalmer, in the year 1985, being an employee of the said Municipality, had got allotted a plot of land in a colony on subsidized rates; however since the said plot was falling in a pit, therefore, he made another application before the Municipality for exchange of the said plot with another plot of land in the same colony; whereupon his brother Jeevan Lal drawn the comments that the plot of land can be exchanged, whereas as per the relevant rules, Jeevan Lal was supposed to make comments otherwise than the one as made.

2.2 The present accused-petitioner Advocate Rani Dan, who was the Legal Advisor also alleged to have not given the correct legal opinion in the matter, and also, the present accused-petitioner, Gopi Kishan, the then Chairman, on the basis of such incorrect legal opinion had issued the patta in question, allegedly contrary to the rules.

2.3 As per the prosecution, from the aforementioned backdrop, the accused persons, in their capacity as a public servants, had acquired for themselves the pecuniary benefits, while adopting the corrupt and illegal means, thereby causing the Municipality/State Exchequer a huge loss to the tune of Rs.7,18, 800/-.

2.4 On the basis of the aforementioned report, a case was registered, and upon due investigation, a charge-sheet was submitted under Sections 13(1)(d) & 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act as well as Section 120-B IPC against the accused persons, namely, Laxmi Narayan, Jeevan Lal, Rani Dan (present petitioner) and Gopi Kishan (present petitioner).

3. Learned counsel for the accused-petitioner submitted that being the employee of the Municipality, the said Laxmi Narayan was rightly allotted the plot of land in question, in a lawful manner, and the same kind of allotment was also made in favour of other employees of the Municipality. Learned counsel further submitted that the earlier plot of land, that was allotted to Laxmi Narayan was falling in a pit and therefore, he sought exchange thereof by allotment of another plot of land in the same colony, on count of the earlier plot being not suitable for the usage of Laxmi Narayan.

3.1 Learned counsel also submitted that the Laxmi Narayan has also surrendered the lease deed issued in respect of the allotment of the first plot, and thus, there was no irregularity in making the allotment of the second plot in question, as alleged by the prosecution.

3.2 As regards the case found to be made out against petitioner-Rani Dan, learned counsel submitted that the said petitioner has only given a legal opinion, and it was not proved that such opinion was given by receiving any illegal gratification, nor there was any conspiracy behind furnishing of such legal opinion. Moreover, as per learned counsel, merely for giving a legal opinion, no offence can be made out against an Advocate (enrolled and registered as a lawyer and not holding any office as an employee), that too, in absence of the sufficient evidence available on record. Further, as per learned counsel, the prosecution has devised the methodology of pick and choose so as to implicate the present accused-petiti