The Supreme Court of India has directed the Union Government to provide complete information about all the cases where permission was either granted or refused under Section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. This section, added in 2018, makes it mandatory to get government approval before starting an investigation against a public servant for any official decision or recommendation.

“...we direct the Union of India to place a Statement vis-a-vis the operation of Section 17A of the said Act by detailing as to in how many cases, permission has been granted... and in how many other cases the permission has been refused,” the Supreme Court stated in its order.

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The Court also asked for data on how many requests for permission are still pending. The Union Government has been ordered to file these details by May 5, 2025. The next hearing on this issue is scheduled for May 6, 2025.

This direction was issued by a bench comprising Justice B.V. Nagarathna and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma. The case was a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by the Centre for Public Interest Litigation. The petition challenges the validity of Section 17A, claiming that it violates Article 14 (Right to Equality) and Article 21 (Right to Life and Personal Liberty) of the Indian Constitution.

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The PIL was argued by senior advocate Prashant Bhushan, while Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati represented the Union of India.

“Section 17A restricts investigations against public officials, even in serious corruption matters. It blocks accountability,” the petitioner argued.

In a related development, a coordinate bench of the Supreme Court recently avoided answering whether prior sanction under Section 17A is needed when a court directs an investigation under Section 156(3) of the Criminal Procedure Code. This issue is currently under consideration by a larger bench.

Case Title: Centre For Public Interest Litigation v. Union Of India

Case Number: W.P.(C) No. 1373/2018