SURJIT SINGH Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Petitioner Surjit Singh had been convicted of offence under Sec. 7/16 of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act (hereinafter referred to as the Act) by Shri B.N. Chaturvedi, Metropolitan Magistrate vide his judgment dated 13-8-1976. He preferred an appeal which was heard and disposed of by Shri D.R. Khanna, Addl. Sessions Judge (now Honourable Mr. Justice) vide his judgment dated 31st of Oct., 1977. While maintaining the conviction of the petitioner for the said offence, he reduced the sentence of the petitioner to R.I. for six months and a fine of Rs. 2,000.00 as against the sentence of R.I. for two years and a fine of Rs. 3,000.00 awarded by the trial Court. In default of payment of fine, the petitioner has been awarded further R.I. for 4 months. Feeling aggrieved he has come up in this revision petition.

(2.) Shortly put the facts of the case are that on 14-2-1973 R.N. Malhotra Food Inspector, New Delhi Mpl. Committee, visited shop No. 118, Mohan Singh Place, Irwin Road, at about noon. He found that the petitioner was running a grocery shop and selling mustard oil and 'besan' to two different customers. So after disclosing his identity he lifted a sample each of both these articles from the shop of the petitioner, in accordance with the provisions contained in the Act and the Rules made thereunder. Since no public witness was agreeable to join the proceedings of sample taking, he associated his own sample box carrier Jaggey in the same. The report of the Public Analyst revealed that the sample of besan was adulterated due to the presence of 20% foreign matter of starches of 'kesari' dal'. So the petitioner was prosecuted for the offence of selling adulterated food article.

(3.) In his examination, under section 342, Criminal Procedure Code, the petitioner admitted the factum of sample taking but took up the stand that he had abandoned 'kiryana' business as required by New Delhi Mpl. Committee and as such he was selling general merchandise on the relevant date. According to him, he had purchased two kilograms of' besan from one Mr. Gupta in Cannaught Place for his personal use and he had kept the same inside the shop, but the Food Inspector insisted on taking sample therefrom.