Sanction needed if there is connection with the duties
The Supreme Court (SC) says, in G.C. Manjunath v Seetaram [2025 INSC 439], prior sanction of the government, under Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), is required even in acts of the public servant carried out in excess of official duties, if the alleged act is reasonably connected with the discharge of official functions, when the government when a public servant is going to be prosecuted.
Purpose of sanction is to avoid vexatious litigation
The purpose of prescribing such prior sanction is to protect the public servants from frivolous or vexatious prosecution by requiring prior sanction from the Government before they can be prosecuted for acts allegedly committed in the discharge of their official duties.
Mere overreach doesn’t disentitle him from protection
Any action undertaken by a public officer, even if it is in excess of the authority vested in them or overstepping the confines of their official duty, would be protected under the Section 197 CrPC, if there exists a reasonable connection between the act complained of, and the officer’s prescribed duties.
A mere excess or overreach in the performance of official duty does not, by itself, disentitle a public servant from the statutory protection mandated under Section 197 of the CrPC.
The SC judgement relied on
The relied on the judgement in D. Devaraja vs. Owais Sabeer Hussain, [(2020) 7 SCC 695], where it was observed that where a police officer, in the course of performing official duties, exceeds the bounds of such duty, the protection under Section 197 CrPC continues to apply, if there exists a reasonable nexus between the impugned act and the discharge of official functions.
Law protects even in case of reasonable overreach
The safeguard of obtaining prior sanction from the competent authority, as envisaged under Section 197 of the CrPC cannot be rendered worthless merely because the acts alleged may have exceeded the strict bounds of official duty.
References
- C. Manjunath v Seetaram [2025 INSC 439]
- Devaraja vs. Owais Sabeer Hussain, [(2020) 7 SCC 695]
