VIGILANCE MANUAL VOLUME III - AP Online

782 DECISION - 398
facts and the court / tribunal in its power of judicial
review does not act as appellate authority to
reappreciate the evidence and to arrive at its own
independent findings on the evidence.
B.C. Chaturvedi vs. Union of India
1995(5) SLR SC 778 : AIR 1996 SC 484
In this case, departmental action was taken against the
appellant, an Income Tax Officer, for possession of assets
disproportionate to his known sources of income.
The Supreme Court dealt with the question whether the
charge of being in possession of disproportionate assets is a
misconduct. Supreme Court held that being a public servant, if at
any time during the period of his office, he is proved to have been in
possession, by himself or through any person on his behalf, of
pecuniary resources or property disproportionate to his known
sources of income, he is enjoined to satisfactorily account for the
same. If he fails to account for, he commits misconduct. Therefore,
as in a prosecution, a public servant is liable to punishment in
disciplinary action. The need to make this misconduct expressly a
part of enumerated items of misconduct under Central Civil Services
(CCA) Rules, is obviated.
The Supreme Court observed that a three-judge bench of
the Supreme Court in Krishnand Agnihotri vs. State of M.P., (1977 1
SCC 816) held that if the excess was comparatively small (it was
less than 10% of the total income in that case), it would be right to
hold that the assets found in the possession of the accused were not
disproportionate to his known source of income raising the
presumption under sub-section (3) of section 5 of the Prevention of
Corruption Act, 1947 (corresponding to sec. 13(1)(e) of P.C. Act,
1988). The Supreme Court observed that the said principle was
evolved by the Supreme Court to give benefit of doubt, due to
inflationary trend in the appreciation of the value of the assets. The