Corrupt people like termites: CBI Judge

Ramkrishan Upadhyay
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, March 23

While saying that corrupt people are like termites who are eating up the roots of the societal and fiscal tree of the nation, Dr Sushil Kumar Garg, Special Judge, CBI Court, has awarded four-year rigorous imprisonment (RI) to former head warder of the Model Jail, Burail, in a seven-year-old bribery case. The court also imposed a fine of Rs50,000 on the convict.

The court had earlier held the accused guilty of offences committed under Sections 7 and 13 (1) (d) read with 13 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act-1988. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had arrested the former head warder, Sarwan Kumar, in July 2014 while allegedly taking a bribe of Rs5,000 from a convict, Sandeep Kumar.

The CBI had filed a chargesheet against the head warder in October 2014. As per the chargesheet, the accused allegedly demanded bribe in the shape of a water purifier or Rs5,000 from a jail inmate, Sandeep Kumar, in the last week of June 2014 in lieu of getting his duty changed from the visitors’ room and assigning him some easier duty. Sandeep was lodged in a barrack with co-accused Prem Singh Bisht.

When Prem Singh Bisht came out on parole on July 9, 2014, he told his brother Pratap Singh Bisht that Sarwan was demanding bribe from Sandeep.

Pratap approached the CBI, which registered a case against the accused. Sandeep gave the mobile number of Pratap to the head warder saying he was his brother and asked Sarwan to get in touch with him for money or the water purifier.

When the accused called Pratap, he alerted the CBI. It laid a trap and caught the jail warder red-handed while taking the bribe from Pratap opposite a school in Sector 45, Chandigarh.

Public prosecutor KP Singh argued for giving exemplary punishment to the accused. Singh said taking a lenient view in such matters would send a wrong message to the undesirable elements in society.

After hearing the argument, the CBI court said persons of the ilk of the convict were termites responsible for eating up the roots of the societal and fiscal tree of the nation, thereby depriving the nation of the fruits of that tree. The court said in view of the fact that the conduct of the accused was highly deplorable, the accused did not deserve any leniency.