In Brief
N. Raghavender, a bank branch manager, was convicted of criminal breach of trust, cheating, and falsification of accounts for allegedly withdrawing funds from the Academy's current account and prematurely encashing FDRs without authority. The High Court upheld his conviction. The Supreme Court, while acknowledging his gross departmental misconduct justifying dismissal, acquitted him of all criminal charges, holding that the prosecution failed to prove mens rea and misappropriation beyond reasonable doubt, particularly due to non-examination of key witness B. Satyajit Reddy and absence of actual loss to the bank.
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