S.JAYARAJAN Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The present petitioner was accused No.3 in C.C.No.1567/1981, in the Court of learned XVII Addl.Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Bengaluru, (hereinafter for brevity referred to as Rs. trial Court'), who was tried alongwith other sixteen accused for the offences punishable under Sections 380 , 381 , 420 read with Section 120-B of Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter for brevity referred to as Rs. IPC '). He was convicted by the trial Court by its judgment of conviction and order on sentence dated 28.11.2005, for the offences punishable under Sections 381 , 420 read with Section 120-B of IPC.

(2.) The summary of the case of the prosecution in the trial Court was that the present petitioner and sixteen other accused from accused Nos.1, 2 and 4 to 17, were the employees at Reserve Bank of India, Bengaluru (hereinafter for brevity referred to as Rs. RBI'), working in different capacities as Note/Coin Examiners, Group Supervisors and Mazdoors etc., All these accused persons together with CW-1 K.M.Mathew hatched a criminal conspiracy during the year 1977 to 1979 in Bengaluru and in pursuance of the said criminal conspiracy, they started taking away punched currency notes either in loose or in packets from vaults where punched currency notes packets are stocked for burning and then these accused used to mix them with punched currency notes while punching and they used to take equal number of non-reissuable currency notes either in loose or in packets, which notes they used to exchange with fresh notes in exchange counter of RBI or take away those non-reissuable currency notes for circulation outside. CW-1 K.M.Mathew (then accused, later became approver), who was working as a Teller in RBI counter was also a participant in the conspiracy.

(3.) The criminal law was set into motion by Deputy Superintendent of Police of RBI/S.P.E. Later on, the investigation was taken over by CBI, which after completion of the investigation, filed charge sheet against the accused persons for the offences punishable under Sections 380 , 381 , 420 read with Section 120-B of IPC.