An employee of a nationalised insurance company is a "public servant" within the meaning of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

M. Murtaza Husain, J.

1. These two applications under Section 482 CrPC (new) have been filed by one and the same person, namely M. S. Thakrur. The Special Police Establishment of Delhi has submitted two charge-sheets against the petitioner and four others in the Court of the Special Judge Anti- corruption (West) at Lucknow under Sections 120-B, 420 and 467 of 1he Indian Penal Code, and Section 5 (2) read with Section 5 (1) (d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Those charge-sheets relate to two separate cases bearing crime nos. 39 of 1974 and 18 of 1975. The occurrence involved in those charge-sheets took place after 2-1-73, i.e. after the coming into force of the General Insurance Business (Nationalisation) Act no. 57 of 1972.

2. Briefly stated, the prosecution case is that the petitioner, in his capacity as a public servant, entered into a conspiracy with the other accused persons to cheat the United Fire and General Insurance Society Ltd. In pursuance of the aforesaid conspiracy the accused committed the alleged crimes and obtained amounts of certain claims after opening fictitious accounts in a local bank. The aforesaid cases were registered and investigated in accordance with the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. After conclusion of investigation charge-sheets have been submitted before the Special Judge.

A technical plea was raised on behalf of the petitioner before the Special Judge to the effect that he was not a "public servant" as defined by Section 2 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947 and, therefore, the cases against him could not be registered under the provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act, nor charge sheets could be submitted against him before the Special Judge. That plea of the petitioner was rejected by the learned Special Judge. The petitioner has come to this Court with the present petitions praying that the Special Judge had no jurisdiction to take cognizance of the aforesaid two cases and, therefore, proceedings of both the cases should be quashed.

3. The petitioner was earlier the Branch Manager of the Co-operative General Insurance Society, Meerut. This Company was undisputedly a unit of United India Fire and General Insurance Co., Ltd. and was carrying on general insurance business. Under the provisions of the General Insurance Business (Nationalisation) Act no. 57 of 1972 the United India Fire and General Insurance Co., Ltd. was nationalised on 2.1.1973. This Act came into force to provide for the acquisition and transfer of shares of Indian insurance companies and undertakings of other existing insurers in order to serve better the needs of the economy by securing the development of general insurance business in the best interests of the community and to ensure that the operation of the economic system did not result in the concentration of wealth to the common detriment, and, for the regulation and control of such business and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. Under Section 4 of that Act all the shares in the capital of every Indian insurance company stood transferred and vested in the Central Government free of trusts, liabilities and encumbrances affecting them with effect from the aforesaid date.

4. Section 31 of the aforesaid Act no. 57 of 1972 made it clear that every officer or other employee of the Corporation or of an acquiring company shall be deemed to be a public servant for the purposes of Chapter IX of the Indian Penal Code. The phrase 'acquiring company' is defined in Section 3 (a) of Act No. 57 of 1972 and Insurance Co., and its unit Co-operative General Insurance Society Ltd., are acquiring companies. It is thus clear that the petitioner was a public servant for the purposes of Chapter IX of the Indian Penal Code when his Company was nationalised by Act No. 57 of 1972. It is now to be seen that what status was conferred upon the petitioner after the nationalisation of the insurance company wherein he was employed as a Branch Mana