Mumbai: A special court for MPs and MLAs on Tuesday convicted former Maharashtra minister and ex-MLA Bacchu alias Omprakash Babarao Kadu for assaulting and criminally intimidating an IAS officer in 2018. He has been sentenced to three months’ simple imprisonment and fined ₹10,000.
‘No Licence to Intimidate a Public Servant’
Special Judge Satyanarayan R. Navander observed, “However noble the intention, one cannot address a public servant in such a manner or threaten him with harm to life or reputation.”
The incident took place when Kadu, upset over the ‘Mahapariksha’ conducted by the Maharashtra IT Corporation, attacked Pradeep P, then Director of the Information and Technology Department and an IAS officer.
Quoting from the judgment, the court said, “Entering the cabin of a senior public officer, engaging in heated arguments, lifting the officer’s iPad, and gesturing to hit him clearly amounts to ‘assault’ within the meaning of Section 351 (of) IPC. This was not a casual act, but one that conveyed the intention to cause harm, sufficient to constitute the offence of assault.”
The judge further stated, “Merely because the accused was a sitting MLA, he did not have any licence to deter a public servant by criminally intimidating him or by making an assault in his office.”
Court Stresses Lawful Conduct
In sentencing the 55-year-old accused, Judge Navander remarked that punishment “should not only be a lesson for the offender but also for others who might consider similar actions.”
“The accused was a sitting MLA. Many avenues were open for him. He could have addressed his grievance even directly through the chief minister. Instead of choosing the appropriate and legitimate way, he went to the office of the informant (IAS officer) and in an unsuited fashion, made an assault, thereby maligning the image not only of the officer but the govt itself,” the judge added.
The 26-page judgment also underlined the significant role of IAS officers in governance, including their involvement in public administration and policy implementation. It stated, “No doubt, there can be grievances about governance or management of a particular department or even regarding conducting the examinations during recruitment processes of the govt. That does not mean that any representative of the people would go to such an officer and attack him violently, thereby intimidating the officer and disrupting his business.”
Section 353 IPC Meant to Protect Officers
The court noted that, given the nature of their public duty, Section 353 of the IPC is designed to shield officers from assault or criminal force while performing duties without fear of intimidation or violence. “The object of punishment as such is not only to give understanding to the accused but also to the prospective wrongdoers that the office of administrative officers should be respected and legal ways be chosen for addressing the grievances,” the judge stated.
Sentence Suspended for Appeal
After Kadu’s lawyer submitted a plea, the court suspended the sentence to enable him to appeal in the Bombay High Court. Special Public Prosecutor Ramesh Siroya cited five witnesses during the trial.
