The latest government order has established the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) as the highest authority for the prosecution of government servants by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). This jurisdiction comes into action if any central government department, ministry or the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) declines to permit such prosecutions.
The Prime Minister’s Role
With the DoPT reporting directly to the Prime Minister, this signifies that the PM will be the deciding entity in any instances of conflict or delay relating to sanctioning prosecutions. This regulation is applicable to all ranks of the all-India services such as the Indian Administrative Service, the Indian Police Service, defence, railways, income tax, central public sector units (PSUs), public sector banks (PSBs), and state-owned financial institutions (FIs).
State Government Officials and Prosecution Sanctions
In contrast, the new order is not applicable to state government officials, as the state government itself holds the competent authority to grant prosecution sanctions. The DoPT order outlines that government departments should not deny sanction for prosecution unless a “valid reason” is provided.
Changes from Previous Policies
This recent order overrules the October 1986 policy on sanctioning prosecutions. The prior policy decentralized the procedure and gave the concerned ministries and departments authorisation to make final decisions. Before 1986, the DoPT was indeed the ultimate authority. Experts suggest that the new order could enhance CBI’s opportunities to investigate and prosecute corrupt public servants.
Delayed Responses to Investigative Requests
Despite the Supreme Court’s judgement in the Vineet Narain case in 1997, which mandated government departments to accord sanction for prosecution within three months of CBI’s request (with a one-month additional allowance in certain scenarios), many requests have been left unresolved for years.
Key Facts:
| Sectors | Years | Delayed Response Cases |
|---|---|---|
| Indian Administrative Service | 2019-2021 | 67 |
| Indian Police Service | 2019-2021 | 103 |
| Public sector banks (PSBs) | 2019-2021 | 39 |
Sanctions for Launching Prosecution
Notably, competent authority sanctions are necessary to launch prosecutions for all offences committed by government officials under the relevant sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 and other laws. If the public servant in question has already retired or resigned from the service at the time of launching prosecution, this sanction is not required. This lack of protection also applies to Public Sector Enterprise (PSEs) employees. As a result, they cannot be included within the scope of Section 197 of Cr. P.C., despite PSEs qualifying as ‘State’ under Article 12 of the Constitution (Mohd. Hadi Raja vs State Of Bihar And Anr, 1998).
