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TMI Blog2021 (9) TMI 933X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... preneurial outreach of the University. As per the F.I.R., the CBI Officials received the informations from the reliable source that M/s. Centurion Institute of Technology (CIT) had received the notice from the Commissioner, Audit, GST and Central Excise for conduct of audit for the financial year, 2017-18 and it is said that during audit inspection, accused-A.B. Kar, Superintendent, GST with his team had informed the accounts section of the said Institute about the violations with respect to GST with their accounts. So, it is the case of the prosecution that there was demand of bribe from the side of the leader of the team comprising of GST Officials entrusted with the audit work and all the members of the team had their approval so as to have pecuniary gain. The CFO having stated of being not aware of the GST avoidance issue has also gone to say that he had his indulgence in the matter with GST Officials and then however says that he was against that. The statements of all those witnesses to the trap laid have already been recorded. The Petitioner is having his root at Bhubaneswar and the Institutions including the CIT under the University are running within the State of Odisha ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... on and being in great difficulty under the present circumstances expressing his inability to come down and reach on the given date and time before the Investigating Officer, when he had requested for his interrogation in virtual mode or through video calling; that has been unreasonably turned down even though it had further been specifically stated therein that on the Petitioner s arrival in the country, he would immediately join physically for one to one interrogation. He submitted that this rejection of the prayer of the Petitioner confirms the apprehension that the Petitioner s immediate presence is insisted upon for certain coercive action so as to cause humiliation to him as also at this crucial point of time to being disrepute to the Institutes and the University as a whole. Referring to the F.I.R., he submitted that the Management of the M/s. Centurion University is looked after by the appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and he handles the administration and one Himansu Sekhar Kabi working as the Chief Financial Officer, (CFO) was entirely looking after the financial aspects and with the above system in place, in the absence of any such document standing to support, t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... luding the CIT run under the umbrella of the University, no independent material is forthcoming on the score that he being in abroad had any knowledge as to the GST audit affair, when it is also not said that he had ever gone and met any of the Officials attached to the office of the GST in this connection. According to him, none of the offences for which the case has been registered, prima facie surfaces against this Petitioner. It was submitted that simply alleging that the Petitioner so directed that accused-Ashutosh Padhy who happens to be a Senior Finance Manager solely looking after the financial affairs of Gram Tarang Employability Training Services Pvt. Ltd (GTET), a social entrepreneurial outreach of the University to settle the matter is an afterthought and for the obvious reason as to harass and humiliate the Petitioner who happens to be one of the Founder Trustees of the University under whose umbrella the CIT stands as one of the Institutes. He submitted that just as an attempt to bring this Petitioner- Trustee into the arena of this case, it is alleged that he had so directed. He submitted that the facts as to phone call being made by the Accused Ashutosh Padhy to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed that as against the CFO Himansu Sekhar Kabi, for defalcation of huge amount of the University, an F.I.R. has been lodged at Jatni P.S. on 8th January, 2021 and the investigation is going on. The police has also seized incriminating materials in connection with the same; whereafter due to unearthing of more facts concerning the same, another supplementary F.I.R. has also been given by the University and it has been detected that he has siphoned huge funds of the University to different fictitious accounts and those accounts have been seized by the police in that criminal case initiated by the University. He submitted that in the meantime, police has arrested GST Consultant, Amit Kumar Mallick and few others for commission of offence under section- 420/465/468/471 of the IPC and section-66 of the Information Technology Act and the CFO-Himansu Sekhar Kabi is absconding since the day of registration of the case. It was submitted that the dubious role of the CFO and others in this matter with the mischievous aim just to divert the attention and focus from their wrongful and illegal act as to defalcation in posing serious problem for no reason for the University in its running is quit ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n interrogation of the Petitioner, further materials in relation to the case may come to surface. He submitted that as per the source of information, accused -A.B. Kar, Superintendent, the leader of the team had given an information to the concerned accounts section of the Institute about the violation with respect to GST Laws and during audit verification, he had pointed out all those for which there was a move from the Institute for resolution of the issues, so that huge demand towards GST and penalty would be avoided and for that the bribe was demanded and accused-Ashutosh Padhy was present at the spot as the giver of the said bribe under the instruction of this Petitioner-Trustee. In support of the same, he placed the reliance upon the statements of that Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and the Chief Finance Officer of the University and as submitted, he filed copies of those two statements with the written note of submission. He submitted that the Petitioner s presence for one to one interrogation being felt necessary for proper investigation of the case, the request for interrogation through virtual mode had been turned down and that under the circumstances cannot be said to hav ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... societal interest, depending upon the facts and circumstances of the case. In case of Siddharam Satlingappa Mhetre vs State Of Maharashtra And Ors; (2011) 1 SCC 694 , the Hon ble Apex Court laid down the factors and parameters to be considered while dealing with anticipatory bail. It was held that the nature and gravity of the accusation and the exact role of the accused most be properly comprehended before the arrest made and that the Court should carefully evaluate the available materials against the accused. It was further as to whether held the Court should also consider whether the accusations have made only with the object of injuring of humiliating applicant by arresting him/her. The Court has also to consider as to whether grant of anticipatory bail in the facts and circumstances of the case, further keeping in view the materials so far collected and likely to be collected in due course, considering the stage of investigation, whether would hamper the effective investigation or not. 5. In that light of above stated principle of law, keeping in view the submissions made, the case in hand now needs consideration. The prosecution case is that the Petitioner is ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ojecting the case of indulgence of this Petitioner-Trustee in the matter. According to him, when since beginning it is the specific case of the Petitioner that it was the game plan of CFO and his other associates for initiation of case so as to divert the attention of the University administration from enquiring into their misdeeds as to defalcation of huge funds of the University in taking needful action, they have the only escape by telling the falsehood in somehow indicating the indulgence of this Petitioner-Trustee so that further run of the University against them would stop. It appears that in support of said type of instructions being given by this Petitioner-Trustee to said accused- Ashuthosh Padhy on earlier occasions as to the financial affairs of the CIT nor as to his indulgence in those matters, no such other document is forthcoming. The telephone call to the Petitioner-Trustee said to have been made by the accused Ashutosh Padhy is under the direction of the CBI Officials and that to shortly after the trap. On the other hand, the Trust has come up with the allegation as to defalcation against that very Chief Financial Officer that he has siphoned huge sum of mo ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e of more than two months since the trap. It is not stated that in course of investigation, it had appeared that material document having any nexus with the incident/ event as also pointing to the indulgence of this Petitioner-Trustee as if being suppressed. The copies of the statement of CEO filed by the learned Special Public Prosecutor, CBI with the written notes of submission shows that it has been recorded on 09.02.2021 and that of CFO on 04.01.2021 as against the trap on 29.12.2020. The CEO has stated that the CFO of the University Finance Team with the GST consultant were directly managing the affair as to audit enquiry and this Petitioner-Trustee was knowing this fact. He has further stated that CFO had told that he would be busy in those affairs with GST Officials and that additionally Petitioner- Trustee had asked accused-Ashuthosh Padhy to manage the interactions with CFO and GST Consultant. He has hinted that this Petitioner-Trustee had directed accused-Ashutosh Padhy to do the needful in the matter. The CFO having stated of being not aware of the GST avoidance issue has also gone to say that he had his indulgence in the matter with GST Officials and then however says ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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