STATE OF GUJARAT Vs. KAMALSINH MUNSHIRAM KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) State of Gujarat has preferred this appeal under Section 377 of the Code of Criminal Procedure against judgment and order dated August 17 1987 whereby learned Judicial Magistrate First Class Lunavada convicted the respondentaccused in summary case No. 412 of 1987 for the offences punishable under Section 304-A of the Indian Penal Code and Section 279 of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 112 and 116 of the Motor Vehicles Act on the accused pleading guilty of the said offences. The learned Magistrate ordered to sentence the accused till rising of the Court and imposed a fine of Rs. 450.00. in default simple imprisonment for one month for the offence punishable under Section 304 A of the Indian Penal Code and imposed a fine of Rs. 50.00 in default simple imprisonment for three months for the offence punishable under Section 112 of the Motor Vehicles Act and no separate sentence was passed for the offence punishable under Section 279 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 116 of the Motor Vehicle Act. It is against this order of sentence the State of Gujarat has preferred this appeal for enhancement of the sentence of the plea that having regard to the seriousness of the offences the sentence imposed by the learned Magistrate is too lenient.

(2.) The aforesaid summary case No. 212 of 1987 was instituted against the respondent-accused in the court of the learned Judicial Magistrate First Class at Lunavada for the aforesaid offences. It was alleged that at about 16 hours on October 9 1988 the accused drove the moto truck No. GTB 6197 on the public road of Virpur-Khanpur road in a manner so rash and negligent as to endanger human life and collided and caused death of one Bismillakhan. The accused was also alleged to have caused death of the said Bismillakhan by rash and negligent act of driving not amounting to culpable homicide and thereby committed offences punishable under Sections 304-A and 279 of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 112 and 116 of the Motor Vehicles Act.

(3.) The sentence provided for the aforesaid offence on conviction is that the accused shall be punished on conviction for the offence punishable under Section 304-A for imprisonment for 2 years or fine or both. As regards offence of rash and negligent driving on the public road under Section 279 of the Indian Penal Code the sentence provided is that punishment for a term which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to Rs. 1000.00 or both. Mr. S. T. Mehta learned A. P. P. appearing for the appellant-State submits that the learned Magistrate has ignored the provisions relating to sentence and has imposed absolutely lenient sentence without considering the seriousness of the offence. There is substance in the submission of Mr. Mehta. In this case the learned Magistrate has not assigned any reasons whatsoever for imposing such lighter punishment as to imprisonment till rising of the court. Whereas the imprisonment extending for a period of two years is provided for the offence under Section 304 of the Indian Penal Code on conviction.