Special Judge CBI Cases Jammu R K Wattal rejected the bail applications of Devinder Sharma and Rajinder Kumar, officials of Agriculture Department who were caught red-handed by CBI while accepting bribe.
According to CBI, a Plant Protection Officer (PPO) and Field Assistant, both officials of Jammu & Kashmir Directorate of Agriculture, Jammu were arrested in a bribery case.
The FIR was registered on a complaint against them for allegations of demanding bribe of Rs 15,000. It was alleged that the complainant (a member of agriculture cooperative society engaged in sale, stocking and distribution) had filed an application with Plant Protection Officer, Jammu for addition of pesticide products of certain firms in the license of his cooperative society. It was further alleged that Plant Protection Officer (PPO) and Field Assistant, both demanded bribe of Rs 15,000 from complainant. Later, the bribe amount was negotiated at Rs 12,000 and CBI laid a trap and caught the accused officials while demanding and accepting bribe of Rs 12,000.
Special Judge CBI Cases Jammu R K Wattal after hearing M M Sharma Senior PP and V K Dogra PP for CBI, observed that accused were caught red handed while accepting the bribe, which establishes prima facie presumption of involvement in offence under Section 7 of PC ACT 1988.
“Consideration of likelihood of hampering of the investigation and tampering of evidence by the accused whose statements have not been recorded as yet, the fact that investigation is still at earliest stage the societal interest at large is definitely not going to be served if the individual right of the accused to bail is given preference at this stage,” the Court observed and dismissed the bail applications.
