ABRAHAM VARGHESE Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE appellant was convicted by the learned Sessions Judge of Quilon under sections 409, 463, 467, 471 and 477,a I. P. C. for having misappropriated funds from the Adoor Bank Ltd. , while he was the agent of the Bank at Pathanamthitta and was sentenced to a concurrent term of five years' rigorous imprisonment.

(2.) THE prosecution case is as follows: -- One Annamma Koshy, P. W. 1 deposited rs. 8,000/-with the Pathanamthitta Branch of the Adoor Bank Ltd. as fixed deposit in 1951. Sometime in January 1959 the accused who was then the Agent at the branch forged certain documents to make out that P. W. 1 had applied for and was granted a loan of Ra. 6,000/- on the security of her fixed deposit of Rs. 8. 000/and appropriated this amount for his own use. On 17-8-1959 the Adoor Bank Ltd. , was amalgamated with the Bank of New India Ltd. As the accused who continued to be the agent under the new set up, failed in spite of repeated demands, to send a statement regarding the gold loan account of the branch, P. W. 3 the then general Manager 08 the Bank of New India sent two officers of the Bank to look into the accounts of the Pathanamthitta Branch. This resulted in the sending of ext. P. 15 statement by the accused to P. W. 3 dated 2-1-1960 to the effect that he had taken for his own use some Rs. 40,000/- from the Bank and that he undertakes to return the money in instalments as a security for which he would execute a registered hypothecation bond within fifteen days of the date of the statement. On 11-1-1960 the accused and his father O. W. 1 executed Ext. P. 5 hypothecation bond in favour of the Bank. Also on that day the accused signed ext. P 16 statement which gives a detailed account of the money he had misappropriates. A demand loan account was opened in the name of the accused he paid in a number of instalments and was continued in the service of the Bank till April 1960 when his services were terminated. The Bank of New India was amalgamated with State Bank of Travancore on 17-6-1961 and as per the instructions of the Reserve Bank of India further investigations were instituted which have resulted in the present case.

(3.) THE accused pleaded not guilty. According to him the admissions of guilt were obtained from him by threats of criminal prosecution.