HIGH COURT OF JAMMU & KASHMIR

AT JAMMU

…..

Bail App. No. 158/2019

Reserved on :19.09.2019

Pronounced on: 24 .09.2019

Suresh Sharma

…Applicant(s)

Through:-

Mr. Abhinav Sharma, Advocate.

V/s

State of J&K

…Non-applicant(s)

Through:- Mr. Raman Sharma, AAG

Mr. Sunil Sethi, Sr. Advocate with

Mr. Parimoksh Seth, Advocate.

CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE TASHI RABSTAN, JUDGE

JUDGMENT

Tashi Rabstan-J

1.

The applicant, Sub Inspector Suresh Sharma, who is in custody since

06.09.2019, through the medium of this application seeks his release on bail.

He is alleged to have committed the offences punishable under Section 5(1)

(d) read with Section 5 (2) of J&K Prevention of Corruption, Act Svt. 2006

and Section 4-S of Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 2014.

2.

The prosecution case, in brief, is that the police station Anti-

Corruption Bureau, Rajouri received a written information from Ajay pal

Singh (hereinafter to be referred as complainant), regarding demand from

him by Sub Inspector Suresh Sharma (hereinafter to be referred as

applicant). It is said that maternal uncle of the complainant Sharanjit Singh

has been arrested in a fake case registered by the applicant, who was posted

2 Bail App No. 158/2019

as Incharge Police Post Rajouri City. On 05.09.2019, when the complainant

visited the Police Post, Rajouri City and enquired the matter from the

applicant, the applicant demanded three lacs from him for helping his

maternal uncle during investigation of the case. Out of three lacs, one lac

was agreed to be paid in advance and rest of amount after bail out of his

maternal uncle. It was stated that applicant threatened the complainant of

harassing his maternal uncle in case he fails to pay bribe. On this complaint,

a case FIR No. 02/2019 was registered on 06.09.2019, against the applicant

and investigation was entrusted to Dy.S.P Gurmeet Singh Ghuman, a trap

laying officer. On the intervening night of 6^th and 7^th September, 2019, a trap

was laid to catch hold of applicant accepting bribe red handed. Accordingly,

after completion of pre-trap proceedings, the complainant contacted the

applicant on his mobile phone that he is coming with money and the

applicant told him to come to his residential room. The said conversation of

mobile phone is stated to have been tapped. The complainant alongwith

shadow witness Sardar Mohd. Malik, A.E. entered the residential room of

the applicant where he demanded and accepted the bribe amount of one lakh

from the complainant and kept it in right pocket of his Short (Nikkar) . On

receiving the signal, the other team members nabbed the applicant on spot

and from his personal search in presence of independent witnesses, bribe

amount was recovered from his possession. In order to ascertain the

genuineness of acceptance of bribe, a solution of sodium carbonate was

prepared in which the finger of right hand of the applicant, his right hand

and the pocket of Nikkar worn by him were washed, which gave positive

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result. Serial numbers of recovered GC notes were tallied with the slips

possessed by the independent witnesses bearing serial numbers and

denomination prepared during pre-trap proceedings and on comparison, it

was found the same. Samples alongwith tainted currency notes were sealed

and marked as exhibits i