2025:KER:29161 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE P.G. AJITHKUMAR FRIDAY, THE 4TH DAY OF APRIL 2025 / 14TH CHAITHRA, 1947 BAIL APPL. NO.4572 OF 2025 CRIME NO.2 OF 2025 OF VACB, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, Thiruvananthapuram ORDER DATED 26.03.2025 IN CRMP NO.540 OF 2025 OF ENQUIRY COMMISSIONER AND SPECIAL JUDGE (VIGILANCE, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM PETITIONER/ACCUSED: ALEX MATHEW AGED 58 YEARS S/O THOMAS MATHEW, RESIDING AT KAIPPALLY VEEDU, KURAVANKONAM ROAD, KOWDIAR, THIRUYVANANTHAPURAM. FORMER DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER (LPG-SALES), INDIAN OIL CORPORATION LTD., COCHIN, KERALA., PIN - 695003 BY ADVS. T.K.SANDEEP SWETHA R. SREELAKSHMI SHIBU RESPONDENT/COMPLAINANT & STATE: STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KERALA, PIN - 682031 SMT REKHA S, SR. PUBLIC PROSECUTOR THIS BAIL APPLICATION HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 04.04.2025, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: 2025:KER:29161 2 P.G. AJITHKUMAR, J. -------------------------------------------------------- B.A.No.4572 of 2025 -------------------------------------------------------- Dated this the 4th day of April, 2025 O R D E R The petitioner is the accused in Crime No.02/2025/SIU-I of the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau, Special Investigation Unit – I, Thiruvananthapuram. The offence alleged against the petitioner is one punishable under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. 2. The allegation against the petitioner is that on 15.03.2025, he received illegal gratification of Rs.2 lakhs from the defacto complainant. He received the said amount as part of Rs.10 lakhs which he demanded as illegal gratification for not transferring customers from the gas agency of the defacto complainant to some other agencies. 3. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Special Public Prosecutor. 4. A report of the investigating officer is made available for my perusal. 5. Petitioner was arrested on 15.03.2025 and he has been in judicial custody since the said date. Bail application filed by the 2025:KER:29161 3 petitioner was dismissed by the Enquiry Commissioner and Special Judge, Thiruvananthapuram as per Annexure-7 order. The reason for refusing bail to the petitioner are contained in paragraph No.8 of the said order which reads as follows: “8. As rightly pointed out by the learned Public Prosecutor this is a case where extensive investigation is necessary. The customers who have been transferred from the agency of the complainant are yet to be questioned. It is to be verified whether the transfer was on their request. Investigation is necessary with regard to the huge assets found in the house of the applicant during house search. I find sufficient force in the contention that if bail is granted there is possibility of the applicant threatening or influencing the witnesses especially when the investigation is in the beginning stage. The allegations against the applicant are very serious in nature. Considering the entire circumstances of the case, I am of the view that granting bail at this stage is likely to hamper the investigation. It is true that custodial interrogation of the applicant has been already done by obtaining him in to police custody. But in the circumstances of the case that alone is not a ground to grant bail.” 6. From the materials produced by the petitioner, particularly Annexures 2 and 5, it can be seen that the authorities of the Indian Oil Corporation, under whom the defacto complainant has been running the gas agency, can transfer customers from one agency to another. The learned counsel for the petitioner would 2025:KER:29161 4 submit that in the light of such empowerment, there was no chance for the petitioner to demand an illegal gratification. It is further pointed out that the authority to transfer customers is the Area Manager and the petitioner being Deputy General Manager has no direct role in the process and that probabilises the case of the petitioner that he was falsely implicated. 7. The fact that tainted money of Rs.2 lakhs was recovered from the possession of the petitioner is undeniable as of now. Already, 1500 consumers were transferred from the gas agency in the name of the wife of the defacto complainant. Therefore the possibility for the petitioner for demanding gratification cannot prima facie be ruled out. Be that as it may, having the petitioner been in custody since 15.03.2025 and the investigation in the matter has been progressed to a good extent, further detention of the petitioner in custody may not be essential. It is true that the offence alleged against him is serious and the facts noted in the report that huge assets of the petitioner was detected in the search of his house impel me to impose strict conditions while granting bail to him. Accordingly, this bail application is allowed and the petitioner is granted bail on his executing a bond for Rs.5,00,000/- (Rupees 2025:KER:29161 5 Five lakhs only), with two solvent sureties each for the like amount, to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional court, subject to the following conditions: (i) He shall not influence or intimidate witnesses or tamper with evidence; (ii) He shall not go abroad without the permission of the jurisdictional Court and shall surrender his passport before the investigating officer, and in case he does not have a passport, he shall file an affidavit to that effect; (iii) He shall appear before the investigating officer as and when called for; and (iv) During the bail period, he shall not get involved in any offence. In case of breach of the bail conditions, the prosecution shall be at liberty to apply for cancellation of the bail before the jurisdictional court. Sd/- P.G. AJITHKUMAR, JUDGE PV 2025:KER:29161 6 APPENDIX OF BAIL APPL. 4572/2025 PETITIONER ANNEXURES ANNEXURE-1 A TRUE COPY OF THE FIR IN VIGILANCE CRIME CRIME NO.02/2025/SIU-I REGISTERED BY VIGILANCE, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM DATED 15.03.2025 ANNEXURE-2 A TRUE COPY OF THE RELEVANT PAGES OF UNIFIED GUIDELINES FOR SELECTION OF DISTRIBUTORS 2016, ISSUED BY GOVT OF INDIA. ANNEXURE-3 A TRUE COPY OF THE JUDGMENT DATED 15.09.2022 IN WPC 26014/2019 OF HONBLE HIGH COURT OF KERALA ANNEXURE-4 A TRUE COPY OF THE E-MAIL CIRCULATING MINUTES OF MEETING DATED 18.10.2022 SEND BY INDIAN OIL CORPORATION MANAGER (LPG-S) RAHUL TO VARIOUS DISTRIBUTORS IN KOLLAM DISTRICT ALONG WITH ITS ATTACHMENT ANNEXURE-5 A TRUE COPY OF THE CIRCULAR NO SL1601 DATED 04.01.2018 ISSUED BY CGM-LPG ANNEXURE-6 A TRUE COPY OF THE INCOME TAX RETURNS FILED BY THE PETITIONER BEFORE THE INCOME TAX DEPARTMENT FOR THE FINANCIAL YEAR 2023-2024 ANNEXURE-7 A TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER OF THE COURT OF THE ENQUIRY COMMISSIONER AND SPECIAL JUDGE, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM IN CRL.M.P.NO.540/2025 DATED 26.03.2025 ANNEXURE-8 A TRUE COPY OF THE DISCHARGE SUMMARY DATED 05.11.2014 ISSUED FROM MIOT INTERNATIONAL HOSPITAL CHENNAI.