‘Rs 15 lakh for sir’: First in a decade, anti-graft agency seeks nod to prosecute a Mumbai judge

In a rare development in the past decade, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has sought permission to prosecute an additional sessions judge from the Mumbai City Civil and Sessions Court. The request was submitted to the Law and Judiciary Department in July, which then forwarded it to the Bombay High Court for a decision. The judge, currently suspended, was named as an accused in a corruption case following the arrest of a clerk-cum-typist who allegedly accepted Rs 15 lakh from a complainant in exchange for a favorable ruling in a civil dispute.

The ACB claims that the clerk demanded and received the bribe on behalf of the judge. This is the first instance in nearly a decade where the ACB has sought prosecution sanction against a sessions judge. The Bombay High Court has previously taken disciplinary action against judges implicated in corruption cases, including dismissing an additional sessions judge last year for similar allegations.

Forensic analysis of phone conversations confirmed the clerk's involvement, and the judge was not arrested as red-handed proof was lacking. A thorough probe was deemed necessary, and the ACB awaits sanction from the Law and Judiciary Department, which must be granted within three months of the proposal.