Jagdish Prasad Gupta vs The State of Bihar

Anjana Prakash, J.—The Appellant has been convicted u/s 7 of the Essential Commodities Act and sentenced to a period of 1 year by the judgment dated 27.4.1994 passed by the Special Judge, Rohtas at Sasaram passed in Kudara P.S. Case No. 23/85, G.R. Case No. 216/1985.

The prosecution case is that the Petitioner was a licensee of coal and there was a report about him in the month of January, 1984 that he was selling coal at a higher rate. He was asked to produce his stock register but he failed to do so, therefore, his premises was raided on 17.3.1985 and it was found that the display board was missing.

The prosecution examined four witnesses on its behalf out of whom P.W. 1 is the informant, P.W. 2, 3 and 4 stated that the Appellant had sold coal at a rate which was higher than which was fixed. The Trial Court disbelieved the major prosecution case that the register had not been produced by the Appellant when called for.

As for the allegation that the Appellant had sold coal at a higher rate, I find that apart from oral evidence there is no documentary proof with regard to the same. In the back ground fact of non-examination of Investigating Officer who alone could have been given objective picture of the situation, I am not inclined to accept the prosecution case as having been proved beyond all reasonable doubt.

In the result, the appeal is allowed and the order of conviction and sentence passed against the Appellants by the learned Special Judge, Rohtas at Sasaram in Kudara P.S. Case No. 23/85, G.R. Case No. 216/1985 by the judgment dated 27.4.1994 is hereby set aside and he is acquitted of his charges. The Appellant is discharged from the liabilities of his bail bonds.