State Can Decline Sanction To Prosecute Public Servant At Its Discretion; Lokayukt Has No Locus To Challenge It: MP High Court

The division bench comprising Chief Justice Ravi Malimath and Justice Vijay Kumar Shukla observed that the role of the Lokayukt ends with the submission of its report to the State-

The grant of sanction is a very important facet in the matter of prosecution of civil servants. It is intended to ensure that there are no frivolous prosecutions that are carried out. It is for this reason that the question of grant of sanction becomes crucial. Therefore, once the Lokayukt has performed its duty of submitting its report to the Government, its role ends. It is the discretion of the Government to grant sanction or not. When such a sanction has been refused, the Lokayukt could not challenge the said order.

Facts of the case were that the Office of the Lokayukt had prepared a report against a public servant who was accused of amassing properties and assets beyond the known sources of his income. The report was placed before the sanctioning authority so as to seek sanction to prosecute him. However, the authority refused to grant sanction. Aggrieved, the office of the Lokayukt moved the Court.

The Investigating Agency argued that the State had erred in refusing to grant sanction to prosecute the accused as there was substantial evidence against him. Further, it was pointed out that the grounds taken by the State in refusing to grant sanction were untenable.

Per contra, the State contended that the establishment of the Lokayukt could not seek for a mandamus against the State to grant sanction for prosecution. Hence, they prayed that the petition be dismissed.

Examining the submissions of parties and documents on record, the Court found force in the question raised by the State regarding the locus of the Lokayukt in questioning the refusal to grant sanction. Describing the extent of the responsibility of the Lokayukt, the Court observed that after the agency submits its report to the State, it is for the State to evaluate the document and decide regarding grant of sanction-

Every State body has a role to perform. It has to do so within the confines of the power vested in it by statute. The Lokayukt has its role to play as much as the State Government has its role to perform. The duty of the Lokayukt is to conduct an investigation and thereafter to place it for grant of sanction or otherwise to the Government. The Government, in turn, has the responsibility to go through the material and thereafter to come to a conclusion as to whether sanction is to be granted or not.

The Court noted that since the role of the Lokayukt ends with the submission of the report, it has no locus to challenge the refusal of the State to grant sanction to prosecute the public servant concerned.

With the aforesaid observations, the Court held that the petition was devoid of merits and accordingly, the same was dismissed.