New Delhi: In a major blow to the government, the Supreme Court on Tuesday set the deadline of three months for the government to sanction prosecution of a public servant.
The apex court gave the ruling on the petition of the Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy, whose petition seeking sanction to prosecute the then telecom minister A. Raja in the 2G spectrum allocation scam was not cleared by the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) for 16 months.
A bench of Justices G.S. Singhvi and A.K. Ganguly said that the three-month deadline can be extended by another month if the government wanted to discuss the issue with the attorney general.
The court also said that the prosecution would be deemed to have been sanctioned if the government failed to decide within the stipulated time frame.
Under the existing Prevention of Corruption Act, sanction of the government is mandatory in order to prosecute any public servant.
While accepting Swamy's petition, the Supreme Court which had reserved is judgement on November 24, 2010, also set aside Delhi High Court judgement refusing to direct the Prime Minister to take decision on granting of sanction against Raja. The court said that the right to file a complaint against a public servant under Prevention of Corruption Act is a constitutional right.
While Swamy hailed the court ruling saying getting sanction was a bid hurdle in fight against corruption, Ravi Shankar Prasad, spokesman of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party termed the court ruling as a slap on government's face.
"It's a big victory for Constitution. This judgment empowers any citizen to go to the court and seek enquiry without any sanctions. Any person can approach the Prime Minister. Now, it's possible to win war against corruption," Swamy said.
