The split verdict this Tuesday by the two-judge bench of the Supreme Court of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and K.V. Viswanathan on the constitutional validity of Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act (1988) has left the vexed question still tantalisingly open: is prior sanction mandatory for an investigation against a government official accused of taking a bribe?

Section 17A, introduced along with a slew of amendments in 2018 to the PCA, made sanction mandatory for investigation and laid down that no police officer could conduct an inquiry or investigation of a public servant accused of taking a bribe without “previous approval” of the competent authority, which could be the Union government, the state government, or the authority vested with the power to dismiss that official from service.

Challenge........

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