NANI GOPAL MITRA Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is brought, by special leave, from the judgment of the Patna High Court dated September 14, 1965 in Criminal Appeal No. 268 of 1962 filed by the appellant against the judgment of the Special Judge, Santhal Parganas, Dumka, dated March 31, 1962.

(2.) In January, 1958 the appellant was employed as a Railway Guard on the Eastern Railway and was posted at Shibganj Railway Station. On January 18, 1958, Hinga Lal Sinha (page No. W. 47) who was in charge of squad of travelling ticket examiners caught hold of Shambu Pada Banerji (page No. W. 54) as he found him working as a bogus travelling ticket examiner in a train. P. W. 47 handed Shambu Pada Banerji to Md. Junaid (page No. W. 48) who was a police officer in charge of Barharwa Railway out-post. A Fard Beyan was recorded on the statement of P. W. 47 and G.R.P. Case No. 12 (1) 58 was registered against Shambu Pada Banerji. In connection with the investigation of that case the house of the appellant which was at a distance of 300 yards from Sahebganj Railway station was searched on January 19, 1958 at about 3 p.m. by P. W. 56 along with other police officers, Md. Junaid (page No. W. 48) and Dharmadeo Singh (page No. W. 57). Various articles were recovered from the house of the appellant and a search list (Ex. 5/17) was prepared. A chargesheet was submitted in G.R.P. Case No. 12 (1)58 against the appellant and Shambu Pada Banerji. Both of them were tried and convicted by the Assistant Sessions Judge, Dumka, by a judgment dated June 12, 1961. The appellant filed Criminal Appeal No. 405 of 1961 against his conviction under S. 474/466 of the Indian Penal Code. The appeal was allowed by the High Court by its judgment dated September 14, 1962, on the ground that there was no proof that the appellant was in conscious possession of the incriminating articles.

(3.) During the course of the investigation of G. R. P. Case No. 12 (1)58, the investigating officer (page No. W. 56) found a sum of Rs.51,000 standing to the credit of the appellant in the Eastern Railway Employees' Co-operative Credit Society Ltd., Calcutta. He also found the appellant in possession of National Savings Certificates of the value of Rs.8,000. On August 24, 1958, the Investigating Officer (page No. W. 56) handed over charge of the investigation of G.R.P. Case No. 12 (1) 58 to P. W. 46 of Sahebganj Government Railway Police Station. P. W. 46 completed the investigation on February 26, 1958. Since by that time it was found that the appellant was in possession of pecuniary resources disproportionate to his known sources of income it was thought that he had come in possession of these pecuniary resources by committing acts of misconduct as defined in clauses (a) to (d) of sub-section (1) of S. 5 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947 (Act 2 of 1947), hereinafter referred to as the 'Act', and since the investigation of a case under the Act could be carried only in accordance with the provisions of S. 5A of the Act, under the orders of the superior officers, the case being G.R.P. Case No. 12 (1) 58 was split up in the sense that a new case against the appellant being Sahebganj Police Station Case No. 11 (2)59 was started upon the first information report of P. W. 46 made on February 26, 1959 to Gokhul Jha (page No. W. 45), Officer in charge of Sahebganj Police Station. By his order dated February 27, 1959, Sri R. P. Lakhaiyar, Magistrate, First Class, Sahebganj, accepted the recommendation of the Deputy Superintendent of Police that Inspector Madhusudan Haldhar, P. W. 55, may investigate the case. Accordingly, Madhusudan Haldhar, P. W. 55, proceeded to investigate the case and after obtaining the sanction of the appropriate authority for prosecution of the appellant submitted a charge-sheet on March 31, 1960. Cognizance was taken and the case was transferred to Sri Banerji, a Magistrate, First Class, who committed the appellant and the two co-accused Baldeo Prasad and Mrs. Kamla Mitra to stand trial before the Court of Session. By his judgment dated March 31, 1962, the Special Judge, Santhal Parganas, convicted the appellant under S. 5 (2) of the Act and S. 411, Indian Penal Code. The appellant and the other co-accused Baldeo Prasad and Mrs. Kamla Mitra were acquitted of the charge of conspiracy under S. 120-B read with Sections 379, 411, 406 and 420, Indian Penal Code and S. 5 (2) of the Act. The Special Judge also acquitted the appellant of the charge under S. 474/466, Indian Penal Code. The matter was taken in appeal to the High Court which by its judgment dated September 14, 1965, set aside the conviction and sentence of the appellant under S. 411, Indian Penal Code and confirmed the conviction of the appellant under S. 5 (2) of the Act. The High Court, however, reduced the sentence of 6 years' simple imprisonment and fine of Rs. 40,000 to 2 years' imprisonment and a fine of Rs.20,000.