20 May,2026 02:09 PM IST | Thane | mid-day online correspondent
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A special CBI court in Thane has acquitted a suspended Income Tax officer and his wife in a disproportionate assets case registered nearly two decades ago, while strongly criticising the investigation carried out by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), reported PTI.
Special CBI Court Judge DS Deshmukh, while delivering the order on Tuesday, observed that the investigation suffered from serious flaws and described the agency's approach as "casual" and "erroneous", reported PTI.
The court acquitted Anil Ratnakar Mallel, then posted as an Income Tax Officer in Thane, and his wife Suvarna Anil Mallel of charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act and Section 109 of the Indian Penal Code related to abetment, reported PTI.
The case had been pending since 2007.
The CBI's Anti-Corruption Bureau in Mumbai had registered the case in January 2007, alleging that Anil Mallel misused his official position to accumulate disproportionate assets between September 1991 and December 2006, reported PTI.
According to the agency, assets had allegedly been acquired in the names of the officer and his family members.
The FIR initially estimated the disproportionate assets at around Rs 15.34 lakh, but the figure was later revised to Rs 28.57 lakh in the chargesheet filed by the CBI in November 2008.
During the trial, the defence argued that investigators failed to properly account for several legitimate sources of income and financial transactions linked to the family.
Defence counsel MS More argued before the court that the investigating agency ignored several important financial records while calculating the alleged disproportionate assets, reported PTI.
According to the defence, these included a joint housing loan of Rs 8 lakh taken by Mallel's wife and his late mother, independent income tax returns filed by the wife since 2000, General Provident Fund withdrawals and documented loans obtained from relatives, reported PTI.
The defence also argued that the CBI incorrectly treated Rs 2.43 lakh in cash recovered during a house search as the officer's personal asset, despite letters submitted by his mother claiming ownership of the money.
The court noted that these aspects were not adequately considered during the investigation and prosecution.
While acquitting the accused, the court observed that the prosecution had failed to properly assess the actual income and expenditure of the accused couple, reported PTI.
The judge pointed out that the prosecution witness had allegedly inflated the calculation of disproportionate assets without evaluating supporting financial documents in the correct perspective.
"It also appeared from the documents that while considering salary income, the prosecution witness considered the net salary, but while deducting unverifiable expenses, the deduction was made from the gross salary," the court noted, reported PTI.
According to the order, this resulted in incorrect calculations that caused "great prejudice" to both accused, reported PTI.
The court also referred to admissions made by the investigating officer during cross-examination, observing that several relevant income sources had not been properly examined.
Judge Deshmukh also referred to a Supreme Court precedent while explaining the standard required for defence in corruption cases.
The court observed that an accused person in a disproportionate assets case is not required to prove innocence beyond reasonable doubt and that establishing a "preponderance of probability" is sufficient.
The judge further criticised the prosecution's handling of the matter and stated that the testimony of the prosecution witness reflected a lack of detailed investigation before sanctioning the case.
"The approach for granting sanction appears casual and without detailed investigation," the court observed.
The acquittal brings to a close a legal case that remained pending for nearly 19 years.
(With inputs from PTI)
