STATE Vs. SIKANDAR LAL JAINQ

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal is directed against a judgment dated 16th May 1980 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge ( ASJ ) Delhi in Criminal Appeal No. 2 of 1980 acquitting the respondents of the offences under Sections 120-B read with Sections 420, 467, 468 and 471 IPC, and reversing the judgment dated 24th january 1980 passed by the learned Metropolitan Magistrate ( MM ) convicting the respondents for the said offences.

(2.) FOR the offence under Section 420 IPC each of the respondents was sentenced by the learned MM to undergo rigorous imprisonment (RI) for one year with a fine of Rs. 2,000 each and in default of the payment of fine to undergo RI for one year. For the offences under Sections 467, 468, 471 and 120-B IPC, the learned MM sentenced each of them separately to RI for 2 years for each of the offences with varying fine amounts. The sentences were directed to run concurrently.

(3.) THE case of the prosecution is that six accused persons i. e. Sikandar lal Jain, Madan Lal Jain, Tek Chand Jain, Ram Nath Chopra, Janeshwar Kumar Jain and B. D. Gupta entered into a criminal conspiracy at Delhi and other places in the years 1963-1965 to cheat M/s. S. P. Motors for obtaining 5 TMB chassis in the names of Joginder Kumar, Govind Singh, Tarsem Lal, Subhash Chander and Sushil kumar on the basis of forged documents. It is stated that in terms of the commercial Vehicles (Distribution and Sale) Control Order, 1963 ( Control order ) which was then in force persons desirous of purchasing commercial vehicles had to give details in a form set out in Schedule 2 to the Control order signed by the applicant. The form was to be submitted to the dealer who was in turn required to maintain a register containing the details.