JOIN USA petition had been filed by Ashoka, who has been accused of securing denotification of land in the possession of Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) thereby violating rules.
Former advocate general and senior counsel B V Acharya had submitted that the lower court had taken cognisance of the complaint against a public servant without any sanction and it amounted to harassment in the absence of sanctions.
Pre-requisite
“The Court has no jurisdiction to take cognisance,” he had argued. He had also stated that a valid sanction was a pre-requisite to taking cognisance of the offence. Arguing on behalf of the petitioner M Manjunath, senior counsel K N Venkat Reddy had submitted that the lower court had applied its judicial mind to the fact of the complaint. He pointed out that the summons had not been issued and the offences had not been made out yet.
Reddy had argued that there was no reason for the Home Minister to be apprehensive that he would be prosecuted. He further argued that it was incorrect to say that the Governor had not accorded permission to prosecute him, as the sanction was automatic in case of a public servant.