No fresh sanction for prosecution on same material: SC

The sanction for prosecution once denied against a government official for corrupt practices cannot be reviewed on the same set of material, the Supreme Court has ruled.
A Bench of Justices Aftab Alam and R M Lodha in a judgement said that once sanction has been denied for prosecuting the official, the sanctioning authority cannot change its opinion and grant a fresh sanction on the same set of material.


The apex court said any fresh sanction can be obtained or given only if the investigating agency has placed fresh set of material in support of the plea for prosecution.
The Bench passed the ruling while dismissing an appeal of the Himachal Pradesh government that even though sanction required under Section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA) and 197 CrPC was denied initially, it can be reviewed at the discretion of the sanctioning authority.