Prison bribery case: Govt. tells HC it will ‘not disturb’ former DGP for now

The State government on Tuesday gave an undertaking before the Karnataka High Court that the former Director-General of Police (Prisons) H.N. Sathyanarayana Rao will not be “disturbed” till April 19 in pursuant to government’s February 26 decision of ordering a probe against him by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in connection with an alleged bribery case.

Recording the undertaking by a government advocate, Justice Raghvendra S. Chauhan adjourned till April 19 the hearing on the petition filed by Mr. Rao, who has questioned the February 26 order as well as the registration of an FIR by the ACB against him based on the government’s order.

Mr. Rao is facing a probe on the allegation that he allegedly accepted a bribe of ₹2 crore for extending special facilities in violation of the law to V.K. Sasikala, who is imprisoned in a disproportionate assets case.

The government had asked the ACB to register a case of criminal misconduct by a pubic servant under Sections 13(1)(c) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, against him and submit a probe report.

However, while denying the allegations levelled against him, Mr. Rao contended in his plea that the government has no power in law to direct the ACB to register a criminal case under the Prevention of Corruption Act, and the ACB can’t register an FIR in the absence of a formal complaint.