GAMANBHAI ZINABHAI PATEL Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The original accused of Criminal Case No.267/85 conducted, tried and decided by the learned Judicial Magistrate [F.C.], Vansda [who will be referred to herein after as the "learned Magistrate of the trial Court"] has, by preferring this Criminal Revision Application under Section 397 read with Section 401 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 [for short the "Cr.P.C.] challenged the correctness, legality, propriety and regularity of the judgment Ex.16 dated 12.1.1996 rendered by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Valsad at Navsari [who will be referred to hereinafter as the "Appellate Judge"] rendered in Criminal Appeal No.11/92, by which the learned Appellate Judge has confirmed the judgment Ex.30 of conviction and sentence dated 30.4.1992 rendered by the learned Magistrate of the trial Court in Criminal Case No.267/85, under which the present petitioner [original accused] has been convicted under Section 255(2) of Cr.P.C. for the offences punishable under Sections 279, 337, 304(A) of I.P.C. and Section 112 read with Section 116 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 and sentenced to undergo rigorous imprisonment for five months and to pay a fine of Rs.1,000.00- and in default of fine to undergo further simple imprisonment for 30 days for an offence punishable under Section 279 of the Indian Penal Code [for short the "I.P.C."], and to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one month and to pay a fine of Rs.250.00- and in default of fine to undergo further simple imprisonment of ten days for an offence punishable under Section 337 of I.P.C. and also to undergo rigorous imprisonment for one and half years and to pay a fine of Rs.1,500.00and in default of fine to undergo simple imprisonment for 45 days for an offence punishable under Section 304(A) of I.P.C. and to pay a fine of Rs.100.00and in default of fine to undergo further simple imprisonment for 3 days for an offence punishable under Section 116 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 for contravention of Section 112 of Motor Vehicle Act, 1939. By the said judgment, the learned Magistrate of the trial Court acquitted the petitioner [original accused] under Section 255(1) of Cr.P.C. for an offence punishable under Section 426 of I.P.C. as against which the State Government has not preferred any acquittal Appeal. The learned Magistrate of the trial Court also directed, in his judgment, that the accused shall run all sentences concurrently.

(2.) In this present Criminal Revision Application, the petitioner was the accused and respondent was the prosecution in aforesaid Criminal Case No.267/85 and, therefore, for the sake of convenience the parties will be referred to hereinafter as the "accused" and "prosecution" respectively.

(3.) The facts leading to this present Criminal Revision Application in a nutshell are as follows :-