Patna High Court – Orders
Kauleshwar Prasad Sah vs The State Of Bihar Through Spl. … on 17 April, 2025
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No.36735 of 2024
Arising Out of PS. Case No.-2 Year-2021 Thana- VIGILANCE District- Patna
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Kauleshwar Prasad Sah Son of Shri Ram Swaroop Sah Resident of
Navratanpur, Indra Nagar, Road No.- 7B, Behind Banwari Bhawan, Postal
Park, P.S.- Kankarbagh, District - Patna (the then Finance Officer, Magadh
University, Bodhgaya)
... ... Petitioner/s
Versus
The State of Bihar through Spl. Vigilance Unit, Patna Bihar
... ... Opposite Party/s
======================================================
Appearance :
For the Petitioner/s : Mr.Hemant Kumar, Adv.
For SVU Mr. Rana Vikram Singh, Law Officer, SVU
======================================================
CORAM: HONOURABLE JUSTICE SMT. SONI SHRIVASTAVA
ORAL ORDER
12 17-04-2025
Heard learned counsel for the petitioner, learned
counsel for the Special Vigilance Unit.
2. The petitioner apprehends his arrest in connection
with Special Case No. 48 of 2021 arising out of Special
Vigilance Unit (SVU) P.S. Case No. 02 of 2021 registered under
sections 109, 120B, 201, 409, 420, 467, 468, 471,506 of the
Indian Penal Code as well as sections 13(2) r/w 13 (1) (b) r/w
12 of Prevention of Corruption Act.
3. As per the FIR, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, while working
as the Vice Chancellor, Magadh University, Bodh Gaya hatched
a criminal conspiracy with the assistance of Finance Officer,
Veer Kunwar Singh University, the Registrar, Patliputra
University private firms namely, Ms Poorva Graphics & M/s
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.36735 of 2024(12) dt.17-04-2025
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XLICT software Pvt. Ltd and other unknown accused persons
and fraudulently and dishonestly cheated the Government to the
extent of Rs. 20 crores during the year 2019-21 in the matter of
purchase of various items related to the use of University during
examination and otherwise, it is alleged that ignoring the advice
of the competent officer, the accused persons raised bill to the
extent of Rs. 20 crores from Magadh University and Veer
Kunwar Singh University without assessing the requirement and
violating the tender procedure and justification of rates etc. The
Finance Officer, Veer Kunwar Singh University and Registrar
Patliputra University cleared all the fraudulent bills of the
private firms named above.
4. The petitioner, who was officiating as the Finance
Officer of Patliputra University, was deputed to Magadh
University as Finance Officer by the order of the
Chancellor/Hon’ble Governor of Bihar where he served in the
capacity of Finance Officer from 15.04.2021 to 04.07.2021.
5. The allegation against the petitioner is that he
connived with the main accused, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the then
Vice Chancellor and other accused persons to clear the
fraudulent bills of accused nos. 3 and 4.
6. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.36735 of 2024(12) dt.17-04-2025
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from bare perusal of the First Information Report, it can be
inferred at the outset that the petitioner is not named in the FIR
and his name has surfaced during the investigation and the
charge-sheet has been submitted against the petitioner on
20.03.2023. It has been further submitted on behalf of the
petitioner that petitioner is innocent and has been falsely
implicated in the present case.
7. It has been further submitted that being the Finance
Officer, the petitioner is bound to act in accordance with the
orders of the Vice Chancellor. Section 16 of the Act also reflects
that the Finance Officer has no role in making any financial
decisions for the University, rather he holds a formal role as a
co-signatory upon the payment of cheques. It has been further
submitted that the petitioner had lodged complaints with
secretary, Governor Secretariat about the mishaps of the
University long before the initiation of the present case.
Annexure-4 to the present application has been brought on
record to substantiate the said submission.
8. The learned Special Public Prosecutor for the
Vigilance (SVU) opposed the prayer for bail and has drawn the
attention of this Court to the averments made in the counter
affidavit filed on behalf of the SVU. It has been stated in
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.36735 of 2024(12) dt.17-04-2025
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paragraphs-10, 13 and 14 of the counter affidavit that the
petitioner was in connivance with the prime accused and other
accused persons. There was a fraud in supply made by the
accused nos. 2 and 3 and knowing these facts the Examination
Controller and the petitioner signed the cheques. Hence, the
petitioner is a part of criminal conspiracy due to which huge
amount of Government of Bihar was misappropriated. The
counsel for the Special P.P. for the SVU hence, submits that a
huge loss has been caused to the state exchequer and the
petitioner is part of the said conspiracy. The attention of the
Court has also been drawn to the fact that the anticipatory bail
application of several similarly situated accused persons have
already been rejected by this Hon’ble Court.
9. In support of their contentions, both the learned
counsel for the petitioner as also the learned counsel for SVU
have relied upon the judgments of the Hon’ble Supreme Court.
Learned counsel for the petitioner has relied upon the judgments
in (1) Santosh So Dwarkadas Fafat Vs. State of Maharastra
(2017) 9 SCC 714 (2) Siddharth Vs. State of Uttar Pradesh &
Anr. (2022) 1 SCC 676 (3) Aman Preet Singh Vs. CBI
through Director 2021 SCC Online SC 941 (4) Satender
Kumar Antil Vs. CBI & Anr. Reported as (2021) 10 SCC 773
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.36735 of 2024(12) dt.17-04-2025
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(5) Mahdoom Bava Vs. CBI reported as 2023 SCC OnLine
SC 299.
10. Learned Special P.P for the SVU has relied upon
the judgment of the Apex- Court in the case of Devinder
Kumar Bansal vs. The State of Punjab (Special Leave to
Appeal (CRL). No.3247 of 2025) reported in 2025 LiveLaw
(SC) 291:-
“23. The presumption of innocence, by itself,
cannot be the sole consideration for grant of
anticipatory bail. The presumption of
innocence is one of the considerations, which
the court should keep in mind while
considering the plea for anticipatory bail. The
salutary rule is to balance the cause of the
accused and the cause of the public justice.
Over solicitous homage to the accused’s liberty
can, sometimes, defeat the cause of public
justice.
24. If liberty is to be denied to an accused to
ensure corruption free society, then the Courts
should not hesitate in denying such liberty.
Where overwhelming considerations in the
nature of aforesaid require denial of
anticipatory bail, it has to be denied. It is
altogether a different thing to say that once the
investigation is over and charge sheet is filed,
the Court may consider to grant regular bail to
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.36735 of 2024(12) dt.17-04-2025
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corruption.
25. Avarice is a common frailty of mankind and
Robert Walpole’s famous pronouncement that
all men have their price, notwithstanding the
un-savoury cynicism that it suggests, is not
very far from truth. As far back as more than
two centuries ago, it was Burke who cautioned:
“Among a people generally corrupt, liberty
cannot last long”. In more recent years,
Romain Rolland lamented that France fell.
because there was corruption without
indignation. Corruption has, in it, very
dangerous potentialities. Corruption, a word of
wide connotation has, in respect of almost all
the spheres of our day to day life, all the world
over, the limited meaning of allowing decisions
and actions to be influenced not by the rights
or wrongs of a case but by the prospects of
monetary gains or other selfish considerations.
26. If even a fraction of what was the vox
pupuli about the magnitude of corruption to be
true, then it would not be far removed from the
truth, that it is the rampant corruption indulged
in with impunity by highly placed persons that
has led to economic unrest in this country. If
one is asked to name one sole factor that
effectively arrested the progress of our society
to prosperity, undeniably it is corruption. If the
society in a developing country faces a menace
Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.36735 of 2024(12) dt.17-04-2025
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assassins to its law and order; then that is from
the corrupt elements at the higher echelons of
the Government and of the political parties.”
11. After considering the rival contentions of the parties,
it appears that there is strong allegation of conspiracy as against
the present petitioner showing his involvement and also
considering the fact that similarly situated co-accused persons
have already been denied the anticipatory bail by co-ordinate
benches of this Court vide order dated 13.02.2025 passed in Cr.
Misc. No. 74836 of 2024, Vide order dated 08.04.2025 passed in
Cr. Misc. No. 32493 of 2024, Cr. Misc. No. 22548 of 2024, Cr.
Misc No. 33718 of 2024, Cr. Misc No. 31143 of 2024, Cr. Misc.
No. 32191 of 2024, Cr. Misc. No. 32719 of 2024 and Cr. Misc.
No. 83228 of 2024 and also considering the ratio laid down by
the Apex Court in the case of Devinder Kumar Bansal
(Supra), I am not inclined to grant anticipatory bail to the
petitioner and his prayer for bail is hereby, rejected.
12. This application stands dismissed.
(Soni Shrivastava, J)
devendra/-
U T
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