D.S.Tewatia, J. - (1.) THE short question of law that fails for consideration in this revision petition is as to whether the offences alleged to have been committed by the petitioners as mentioned in the complaint, were committed in the performance or put ported performance of their official duties so as to render their prosecution under those offences contingent on the grant of sanction by the competent authority under section 197, Criminal Procedure Code.
(2.) WHETHER certain acts or omissions constituting the alleged offences in a given case were committed in the performance or purported performance of the official duty have to be judged in the light of given facts of each case. So, at this stage a brief resume of relevant facts becomes necessary. The petitioner No. 1 Mr. N.P. Sahni holds the rank of a first -class gazetted officer in the Enforcement Directorate, Government of India, at Jullundur City; and the other petitioner Bhagat Ram is his peon holding the rank of Sepoy. On 15th September, 1973, one Shri R.C. Bhalla, an official of the said department, had raided the premises of the respondent Sumand Singh, and took into possession passbook of the Co -operative Bank belonging to the complainant and another similar pass book of the Co -operative Agriculture Service Society belonging to his daughter -in -law. On 17th September, 1973, in pursuance of the official summons from the Enforcement Directorate, the complainant Sumand Singh attended the office of the petitioner No. 1. Bhagat Ram, accused -petitioner No. 2, had ushered him into his office where petitioner No. 1 is said to have demanded Rs. 1,000/ - as illegal gratification. On the refusal of the complainant -respondent to accede to that demand, petitioner No. 1, N.P. Sahni, is said to have showered filthy abuses on him. The complainant's protest against the said petitioner's misbehaviour towards him only further enraged the latter and drew from him still filthier abuses that the petitioner No. 1 did not stop at that, and he directed accused -petitioner No. 2 to tear off the turban of the complainant and hold him by his long hair. The said occurrence was witnessed by one Kishan Singh, retired Deputy Superintendent of Police and Sarpanch of village Athola ; Lehna Singh, retired D.S.P. as also Puran Singh, Sarpanch of village Wadala Kalan. When P.Ws. asked petitioner No. 1 not to insult the complainant in the manner he was doing, they were turned out of his office. Thereafter, he got the complainant illegally detained in an adjoining room where he was tortured and made to apologies to the said petitioner in writing. Thereafter, the complainant was got arrested under section 19(1) of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1947 (Act VII of 1947) and was produced before Shri Amjad Ali Khan, Chief Judicial Magistrate, who released him on bail.
(3.) AN objection was raised before the trial Magistrate that the Criminal Proceedings against the petitioners, could not be proceeded unless sanction under section 197, Criminal Procedure Code, and section 26 of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1947, is accorded by the competent authority. The trial Magistrate dismissed the objection holding that no such prior sanction was required Hence the present petition at their instance.;