SURESH BABU Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant herein challenges the conviction and sentence against him under Section 55(a) of the Act ('the Act' for short) in S.C 34/2005 of the Court of Session, Palakkad. He faced trial before the learned Additional Sessions Judge (Adhoc) I, Palakkad on the allegation that at about 11.30 a.m on 12.8.1999, he was found possessing three litres of arrack in a plastic can of 5 litres capacity on the public road in front of his house at Cherpulassery.

(2.) The offence was detected by a Preventive Officer of the Cherpulassery Excise Range. He arrested the accused on the spot and seized the plastic can allegedly containing arrack. On the basis of the arrest and seizure, the Preventive Officer himself registered the crime and occurrence report. The Excise Inspector conducted investigation and submitted final report in court.

(3.) The accused appeared before the learned trial Judge and pleaded not guilty to the charge framed against him. The detection was made after the coming into force of Section 8 of the Act. Instead of framing charge under Section 8(2) of the Act, the charge was wrongly framed under Section 55(a) of the Act. The prosecution examined five witnesses and proved Exts.P1 to P7 documents in the trial court. The MO1 property was also identified during trial. The accused projected a defence of total denial. He did not adduce any evidence in defence.