In Brief
The Court considered whether a public servant (Village Accountant) could be prosecuted for allegedly fabricating official documents and creating fake records despite the competent authority refusing to grant prosecution sanction under Section 197 CrPC. The Court held that Section 197 protection applies only to acts committed in discharge of official duty. Since fabrication of records cannot constitute official duty, it falls outside Section 197's scope. The High Court erred in quashing the FIR and chargesheet entirely. The appeal was allowed, and all matters were left open for trial, with the direction that the judgment's observations were made solely for this appeal and do not express final opinion on merit.
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