VIGILANCE MANUAL VOLUME III - AP Online

DECISION - 262
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that the taking of gratification must be connected with any specific
official action, favour or service by way of motive or reward, no such
connection is necessary to be proved in order to bring home an
offence under sec. 165 and all that is necessary to establish is that a
valuable thing is accepted or obtained or agreed to be accepted or
attempted to be obtained by a public servant from any person whom
he knows to have been or to be likely to be concerned in any
proceeding or business transacted or about to be transacted by such
public servant or having any connection with the official function of
such public servant and such valuable thing has been accepted or
obtained or agreed to be accepted or attempted to be obtained without
consideration or for a consideration which such public servant knows
to be inadequate. The reach of sec. 165 is definitely wider than that
of sec. 161. Moreover, it is clear from illustration (c) to sec. 165 that
money or currency is regarded by the Legislature as a valuable thing
and if it is accepted or obtained by a public servant without
consideration or for inadequate consideration in the circumstances
set out in sec. 165, such public servant would be guilty of an offence
under that Section.
Supreme Court further held that sec. 165 is so worded as to
cover cases of corruption which do not come within sec. 161, 162 or
163 (corresponding to secs. 7, 8, 9 of P.C. Act, 1988). Indisputably
the field under sec. 165 is wider. If public servants are allowed to
accept presents when they are prohibited under a penalty from
accepting bribes, they would easily circumvent the prohibition by
accepting the bribe in the shape of a present. The difference between
the acceptance of a bribe made punishable under secs. 161 and 165
IPC, is this: under the former section the present is taken as a motive
or reward for abuse of office; under the latter section the question of
motive or reward is wholly immaterial and the acceptance of a valuable
thing without consideration or with inadequate consideration from a
person who has or is likely to have any business to be transacted, is
forbidden because though not taken as motive or reward for showing