Section 20 - PCA

Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 S. 20

Presumption to be drawn u/s 20 is not an inviolable one

Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, Section 20 - Presumption to be drawn u/s 20 is not an inviolable one - The accused charged with the offence could rebut it either through the cross-examination of the witnesses cited against him or by adducing reliable evidence. If the accused fails to disprove the presumption the same would stick and then it can be held by the Court that the prosecution has proved that the accused received the amount towards gratification - It is equally well settled that the burden of proof placed upon the accused person against whom the presumption is made u/s 20 of the Act is not akin to that of burden placed on the prosecution to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.

2009 SCeJ 001, C.M. GIRISH BABU v. CBI, COCHIN, HIGH COURT OF KERALA