Full Judgment Text
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PETITIONER:
NARINDRA KUMAR JAIN
Vs.
RESPONDENT:
THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH
DATE OF JUDGMENT: 10/05/1996
BENCH:
RAMASWAMY, K.
BENCH:
RAMASWAMY, K.
G.B. PATTANAIK (J)
CITATION:
JT 1996 (5) 594 1996 SCALE (5)7
ACT:
HEADNOTE:
JUDGMENT:
O R D E R
Leave granted.
This appeal by special leave arises from the judgment
of the Division Bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court made
in Criminal Appeal No.1394 on October 15, 1986. The
Magistrate has acquitted the appellant of the charges under
Sections 420 and 409 IPC and other offences but on appeal
the High Court convicted the appellant for an offence under
Section 409 IPC and sentenced him to undergo imprisonment
till the rising of the Court, and a fine of Rs.500/-. In
default of the payment of the fine, he was directed to
undergo six months’ rigorous imprisonment. Since the learned
counsel for the appellant had raised a question whether the
deficiency is within 5% of the total quantity and since the
Court had not gone into that question, we directed the State
to produce the entire record. Pursuant thereto, the evidence
has been made part of the record and we have carefully
scanned the evidence.
The charge against the appellant is that he was posted
as Manager of Kisan Rice Mills, Sarngarth between January
29, 1968 to October 30, 1973. During the said period, while
he was in custody and management of the huge stocks of paddy
entrusted to him, it was found that 1,500 quintals paddy was
unaccounted for. Consequently, the charge came to be framed
against him in the Court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate
for the aforesaid offences. As stated earlier, the
Magistrate acquitted him of the charges but the High Court
convicted him for the offences under Section 409 IPC. After
elaborate consideration of the evidence, the High Court has
recorded as under:
"In our opinion the evidence
discussed above clearly establishes
that 1,500 qtls. of paddy was found
short in the stock which was
verified in the presence of the
accused. It is true that only 5% of
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bags were weighed out of the total
quantity present. That, however,
has been the matter employed and
the accused never raised any
objection to it. In any case, the
accused has admitted the shortage
vide Ex.P-13 and his explanation
have been that it was due to the
fact of the paddy drying. The
documents proved and the oral
evidence discloses that he had made
false entries and showed a false
transfer of this quantity of paddy
to Baramkela society. In our
opinion, the evidence establishes
beyond doubt that the accused had
misappropriated 1500 quintals of
paddy entrusted to him."
This finding of the High Court gets amply support from
the evidence of the witnesses. We are totally in agreement
with the said finding. The witnesses are disinterested
official witnesses. They have no axe to grind against the
appellant. PW-1 has explained that he had physically got the
stock verified every year and noted the deficiency. He also
stated that it was done in the presence of the appellant-
accused. PW-2 also has spoken with reference to the record
of the maintenance and he was in custody of the record
thereof. Under these circumstances, the evidence clearly
establishes that the appellant has failed to account for
1,500 quintals of paddy entrusted to him. Therefore, the
conviction of the appellant under Section 409 is well
justified. Though we find that the sentence imposed by the
High Court was inadequate but at this distance of time, it
will not be necessary to give any notice for the enhancement
of the sentence.
The appeal is accordingly dismissed.