CHELLAPPAN PILLAI Vs. KARANJIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These two criminal appeals are directed against the order of acquittal passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge of Trivandrum, Criminal Appeal 49 of 1961 is by the State and Criminal Appeal 33 of 1961 is filed by the complainant after obtaining special leave under S.417 [3] Cr. P.C.

(2.) The accused in the case Sri. R.K. Karanjia is the Editor and Publisher of a News Magazine called Blitz published from Bombay. In the issue of the Magazine dated 11-7-1959 a photograph was published with a caption Soldiers of the Goonda War wait in the compound of Bishops Palace at Trivandrum for the church bells to toll, the signal for attack. The complainant Sri Chellappan Pillai, the Chief Correspondent of a Malayalam daily called Malayala Rajyam one of the persons in the photograph has filed the complaint alleging that the photograph with the false caption was published with intent to harm his reputation and to lower him in the estimate of others.

(3.) On 15-6-59 Pw. 1 and some other Press representatives of Trivandrum along with Pw. 2 the Director of Public Relations visited the premises of St. Josephs High School, a school under the management of the Archbishop of Trivandrum. This school was not reopened on the 15th June as a protest against the Kerala Education Act. The school was heavily stoned by a crowd of people who were opposed to the Vimochana Samaram or the Liberation Struggle as people called it, a movement started against the Communist rule in Kerala. Pw. 3 the Official photographer took a photograph of the school with the local Press representatives including the complainant and traces of stones having been thrown at the school by the hostile crowd.