- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:18548 CRL.P No. 7022 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 2ND DAY OF JUNE, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S VISHWAJITH SHETTY CRIMINAL PETITION NO. 7022 OF 2025 BETWEEN: SRI S.N. KUMAR AGED 45 YEARS S/O LATE S.K. NINGAPPA METER READER-IN-CHARGE ASSISTANT ENGINEER SHIVANI SECTION, MESCOM AJJAMPURA TALUK, PERMANENT RESIDENT OF SHANUBHOGANAHALLI VILLAGE AND POST AJJAMPURA HOBLI AND TALUK CHIKKAMAGALURU DISTRICT - 577 547. …PETITIONER (BY SRI P.P. HEGDE, SENIOR COUNSEL FOR SRI VENKATESH SOMAREDDI, ADV.) AND: STATE OF KARNATAKA THROUGH POLICE INSPECTOR LOKAYUKTA POLICE STATION CHIKKAMAGALURU REPRESENTED BY SPECIAL PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA BANGALORE - 560 001. …RESPONDENT (BY SRI. B.S. PRASAD, ADV.,) Digitally signed by NANDINI M S Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:18548 CRL.P No. 7022 of 2025 THIS CRL.P IS FILED U/S.439 (FILED U/S.483 BNSS) CR.P.C PRAYING TO GRANT REGULAR BAIL TO THE PETITIONER IN CONNECTION WITH CRIME NO.3/2025 OF LAKAYUKTA POLICE STATION, CHIKKAMAGALURU FOR THE OFFENCE P/US/ 7(a) OF PREVENTION OF CORRUPTION ACT, 1988 (AMENDMENT ACT, 2018) PENDING ON THE FILE PRINCIPAL DISTRICT AND SESSIONS JUDGE AND SPECIAL JUDGE, CHIKKAMAGALURU. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ORDERS, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S VISHWAJITH SHETTY ORAL ORDER 1. Accused in Crime No.3/2025 registered by Lokayuktha Police Station, Chikkamagaluru, for the offences punishable under Section 7 (a) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, is before this Court under Section 483 of BNSS, 2023, seeking regular bail. 2. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned counsel for respondent, who has filed his statement of objections. - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:18548 CRL.P No. 7022 of 2025 3. It is the case of the prosecution that on 23.04.2025, defacto complainant Sri. Anand G, who is a Class I Electrical Contractor had approached the Lokayuktha Police, Chikkamagaluru and submitted first information alleging that on 21.04.2025, the Executive Engineer, BESCOM, Kadur, had given him Work Order and thereafter, when the first informant met the petitioner herein with respect to the aforesaid work order, petitioner allegedly demanded bribe of Rs.2 lakhs to give effect to the Work Order and the said conversation of the petitioner with the first informant was recorded in his mobile phone and thereafter, he had approached the Lokayuktha Police on 23.04.2025. In the trap that was subsequently laid on 28.04.2025, petitioner herein was allegedly caught red handed while receiving bribe amount of Rs.20,000/- from the defacto complainant. Thereafter, bribe amount was subjected to panchanama and the petitioner was arrested and produced before the jurisdictional Court and remanded to judicial custody. Bail application filed by him before the jurisdictional Sessions Court in Crime No.3/2025 was rejected on 07.05.2025. Therefore, he is before this Court. - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:18548 CRL.P No. 7022 of 2025 4. FIR in the present case was registered against petitioner with an allegation that he had demanded a sum of Rs.2 lakhs as bribe from the defacto complainant for the purpose of giving effect to the Work Order that was issued to the defacto complainant on 21.04.2025. Petitioner is working as Meter Reader and in-charge Assistant Engineer, MESCOM and in the trap that was subsequently laid on 28.04.2025, petitioner allegedly was caught red handed while receiving bribe amount of Rs.20,000/- from the defacto complainant. According to the petitioner, he has offered an explanation that the amount recovered from him was paid by the defacto complainant towards loan borrowed by him from the petitioner. Be that as it may, the fact remains that major portion of the investigation in a trap case is completed on the day of trap itself. Petitioner is in custody for the last more than one month. Since the petitioner is a government servant, there cannot be any apprehension that he is likely to flee away from justice. The maximum punishment for the alleged offence is imprisonment for a period of seven years. Major portion of the investigation in the case is completed and the prosecution is awaiting the report of FSL for the purpose of filing final report in the present - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:18548 CRL.P No. 7022 of 2025 case. Under the circumstances, I am of the opinion that the prayer made by the petitioner for grant of regular bail needs to be answered affirmatively subject to appropriate conditions. Accordingly, the following order:- 5. The petition is allowed. The petitioner is directed to be enlarged on bail in Crime No.3/2025 registered by Lokayuktha Police Station, Chikkamagaluru, for the offences punishable under Section 7 (a) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, subject to the following conditions: a) Petitioner shall execute a personal bond for a sum of Rs.1,00,000/- with two sureties for the likesum, to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional Court; b) The petitioner shall appear regularly on all the dates of hearing before the Trial Court unless the Trial Court exempts his appearance for valid reasons; c) The petitioner shall not directly or indirectly threaten or tamper with the prosecution witnesses; d) The petitioner shall not involve in similar offences in future; - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:18548 CRL.P No. 7022 of 2025 e) The petitioner shall not leave the jurisdiction of the Trial Court without permission of the said Court until the case registered against him is disposed off. Sd/- (S VISHWAJITH SHETTY) JUDGE DN