Nagpur: The Special Court for Prevention of Corruption Act, presided over by District & Sessions Judge Shri S.S. Moudekar, has acquitted Naib Tahsildar Navnath Kathkade of graft charges under Sections 7, 11, 13(1)(d) read with Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The prosecution had alleged that Kathkade demanded bribes from complainant Sahil Sayyed after confiscating his trucks for illegally transporting sand. It was claimed that Kathkade sought ₹4,000 per trip, along with a lump sum of ₹60,000, a mobile phone, and a SIM card to permit continued sand excavation. Following a complaint, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) laid a trap with tainted currency of ₹20,000 and other items, which the accused was said to have accepted. Six witnesses were examined to support the case.
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However, defence counsel Advocate Prakash Naidu, along with Advocates Mitesh Bais, Homesh Chauhan, Surabhi (Naidu) Godbole, and Dhruv Sharma, argued that the complainant and the shadow panch witness failed during cross-examination. The court was told that both admitted key discrepancies, including that the verification of the bribe demand had not taken place as claimed in the chargesheet.
The defence further highlighted contradictions in witness statements and pointed out that the shadow panch did not actually witness the alleged transaction. The electronic voice recordings produced by the prosecution were also dismissed by the court due to lack of verifiable authenticity.
Advocate Naidu also argued that the complainant, being involved in illegal sand excavation, had vested interests and could have falsely implicated the officer. Since the initial demand for a bribe—considered essential proof—was not established, the presumption of guilt could not be applied.
After considering the evidence and defence submissions, the Special Court ruled that the prosecution failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt and acquitted Naib Tahsildar Kathkade of all charges.
