NARINDRA KUMAR JAIN Vs. STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Leave granted.

(2.) 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 Ss.420 and 409, I.P.C. and other offences but on appeal the High Court convicted the appellant for an offence u/s.409. I.P.C. 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.

(3.) 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 S.409, I.P.C. After elaborate consideration of the evidence, the High Court has recorded as under: