SUBHADRA Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant was convicted by the court below under Section 58 of the Abkari Act. The appellant was sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for three years and a fine of Rs.1,00,000/- and in default to rigorous imprisonment for six months.

(2.) Pw4 was the Sub Inspector of Police, Vilappilsala during the relevant period. During the raid conducted by PW4 and party, the appellant was found in possession of a bottle having 1 litres of arrack at 5.30 p.m., on 8.5.2000. PW4 was convinced that the content inside the bottle was arrack. A woman police constable arrested the appellant as instructed by PW4. Thereafter, a ten litre can containing full of arrack was found concealed in a pit covered with dry leaves near to the place where the appellant was found. PW4 seized, sealed and labelled the contraband in accordance with law. Thereafter, the appellant and the contraband articles were brought to the police station along with the contemporary records. Thereafter, the above crime was registered.

(3.) Pw3 was a police constable, who accompanied PW4 for the raid. He also supported the evidence of PW4 in all material aspects. PW5 was the Deputy Superintendent of Police who conducted the investigation. After completing the investigation, he filed the final report before the court. PW6 was the thondy clerk of the Magistrate court concerned. PW6 stated that he received the contraband articles on 9.5.2000 and on the very same day, he entered the same in the Thondy Register. PW6 had drawn the sample from both the contraband articles separately, sealed the same and forwarded the same to the laboratory for analysis in a tamper-proof condition. Ext.P8 is the certificate of chemical analysis which would show that one sample contained 31.28% and the other sample contained 32.85 % by volume of ethyl alcohol.