K V KRISHNAMURTHY IYER Vs. STATE OF MADRAS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The above batch of appeals against the order of the High Court of Judicature at Madras dated 14-8-1951 is before us by special leave.

(2.) The appellants preferred a number of petitions to the High Court in what is known as the Hanuman Bank Conspiracy Case to quash no less than 67 charges framed against them by the Special Magistrate, Tanjore. The High Court quashed all the charges but directed a retrial of the appellants (who were some of the accused) on the charge of conspiracy between October 1946 and April 1947 to falsify bank accounts and to bring into existence a false balance-sheet. It also decided to withdraw the case under Section 526 (1)(e), Criminal P. C. to itself and added a direction under S. 526 (2) that the case be tried by warrant procedure but without a jury. A strong recommendation was made to the Govt. for the appointment of a Director of Prosecutions on a fixed salary not much below that of a High Court Judge for handling this and other complicated cases.

(3.) The facts giving rise to these appeals are these: