MP High Court upholds acquittal of patwari Santosh Rathore in Lokayukta bribery case
The Madhya Pradesh High Court on 30 October 2026 refused the Lokayukta leave to appeal against a Doraha patwari's acquittal, holding that no bribe demand was proved.
Key points
- The Madhya Pradesh High Court refused the Lokayukta's Special Police Establishment leave to appeal against a patwari's acquittal.
- The court held on 30 October 2026 that the prosecution failed to prove a demand, or even an attempted demand, for a bribe.
- The trial court's acquittal of 28 December 2024 stands, and the Lokayukta's appeal was dismissed for want of leave.
Santosh Rathore, a halka patwari (village revenue official) at Doraha, stays acquitted in a Lokayukta bribery case after the Madhya Pradesh High Court refused, on 30 October 2026, to let the Special Police Establishment of the Lokayukta appeal against his acquittal. The court held that no demand for a bribe was proved.
What Happened
According to the judgment, two complainants had told the Special Police Establishment (SPE), Lokayukta, Bhopal, that the patwari demanded Rs 35,000 from one of them and Rs 6,000 from the other to process the partition of family land. The SPE registered an FIR in 2021 under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, the provision on public servants taking a bribe, and laid a trap. The trap failed and was closed, the judgment records.
The Special Judge (Prevention of Corruption Act), Sehore, acquitted him on 28 December 2024. The Lokayukta then sought the High Court's leave to appeal, which the law requires before the state can appeal an acquittal.
The High Court held that a note sheet dated 6 March 2021 showed the patwari had already submitted his report on the land before the complaint, so the trial court made no error in finding the claimed motive for the demand falsified. Both complainants denied the demand in court, the recorded conversation was inaudible when played, and no witness identified the patwari's voice, the court noted. It held that the evidence did not establish even an attempt to demand or receive a bribe.
These were allegations, not findings of guilt; the accused is presumed innocent until proven guilty in court, and the trial court's acquittal now stands.
What It Means
The court held that an acquittal reinforces the presumption of innocence, and that leave to appeal needs a prima facie case or an arguable point, which it found missing here. The judgment says a failed trap does not by itself rule out the offence, since Section 7 also covers an attempt to obtain an undue advantage, but the attempt still has to be proved by reliable evidence.
Anyone asked for a bribe by an official can report it to their state's anti-corruption bureau; Oquilia's guide to every state's helpline is at https://www.oquilia.com/report-a-bribe.
Source: High Court judgment
Sources & Citations
- High Court judgment — Madhya Pradesh High Court