PANAJI
In a setback to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the agency failed to convince the Bombay High Court at Goa to overturn the acquittal of a former MSME official accused of misusing funds and using fake bills during a government programme in Goa.
Dismissing the appeal filed by the CBI’s Anti-Corruption Branch, Justice Ashish Chavan upheld the March 2021 judgment of the South Goa Sessions Court acquitting Shivanand Bachagundi, former Assistant Director and Drawing and Disbursing Officer (DDO) at the MSME Development Institute, Margao.
The case related to expenses incurred during the National Vendor Development Programme held in Goa in February 2013, for which Rs 4.5 lakh had been sanctioned. The prosecution claimed that Bachagundi used 12 fake bills and vouchers to wrongly claim Rs 94,090 and showed inflated payments made to Thomson Enterprises.
However, the High Court found no reason to interfere with the acquittal, observing that the trial court had properly assessed the evidence and that its findings were a “possible view” in law.
The court noted that the accused was not solely responsible for procurement or expenditure, and all bills required prior approval from the MSME-DI Director before payments could be processed.
“The prosecution has failed to prove that the respondent was entrusted with the funds or that he dishonestly used them for personal gain,” the order stated.
The High Court also held that there was no evidence that the accused had forged documents or knowingly used fake bills.
On charges of cheating and criminal misconduct, the court said the prosecution failed to prove misuse of office or any wrongful gain.
The court further agreed with the trial court’s finding that the sanction to prosecute the accused was legally flawed, as the departmental inquiry report clearing him was not placed before the sanctioning authority.
