K. SATHEESAN Vs. STATE OF KERALA AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ACCUSED in ST. No. 677/2006 on the file of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Kuthuparamba is the revision petitioner herein.

(2.) THE case was taken on file on the basis of a private complaint filed by the complainant - second respondent against the revision petitioner alleging offence under section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act (herein after called the Act).

(3.) WHEN the revision petitioner appeared before the court below, the particulars of offence were read over and explained to him and he pleaded not guilty. In order to prove the case of the complainant, the complainant himself was examined as PW1 and Exts. P1 to P6 were marked on his side. After closure of the complainant's evidence, the revision petitioner was questioned under section 313 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (herein after called the Code) and he denied all the incriminating circumstances brought against him in the complainant's evidence. He had further stated that he had not issued any cheque and there is no transaction between the complainant and the revision petitioner. But no evidence was adduced on his side to prove his case. After considering the evidence on record, the court below found the revision petitioner guilty under section 138 of the Act and convicted him thereunder and sentenced him to undergo simple imprisonment for three months and also to pay the fine of Rs. 75,000/ - in default to undergo simple imprisonment for six months more. It is further ordered that if the fine amount is realised, the same be paid to the complainant as compensation under section 357(1)(b) of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Aggrieved by the same, the revision petitioner filed Crl. Appeal No. 294/2008 before the Sessions Court, Thalassery, which was made over to III -Additional Sessions Court Thalassery for disposal and the learned Additional Sessions Judge by the impugned judgment allowed the appeal in part confirming the order of conviction but modified the sentence to undergo imprisonment till rising of court and converted the fine to compensation and reduced the default sentence to two months under section 357(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Aggrieved by the same, the present revision has been filed by the revision petitioner -accused before the court below.