No Leniency to be Showed by Legal Forums in Matters Relating to Corruption or Embezzlement.

In the case of U.P State Road Transport Corporation v. Gopal Shukla, decided on 1^st September 2015 by the Supreme Court of India presided by the Division bench of Justice Dipak Misra and Justice P.C. Pant, the bench held that no leniency should be taken in matters relating to corruption. Coming down heavily upon the Courts, the bench held that a legal forum should not allow itself to imagine facts and conceive of perverted situations to brush aside the material brought on record and then for contrived reasons arrived at a conclusion that there was possibly no embezzlement or personal gain. In the instant case, the conductor had allowed 25 passengers to travel in the bus without ticket as if the fare was paid, thereby pocketing the money. The bench held both the Labour Court and High Court at error by imposing a lesser punishment on the respondent whereas the only punishment, on establishment of the charges which have been accepted by the labour court, should have been a dismissal and not a lesser one.