STATE OF GUJARAT Vs. MUKESHKUMAR MANSUKHLAL SHAH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY filing the present appeal under Section 378 of the code of Criminal Procedure, the State of gujarat has challenged the legality and validity of the impugned judgment and order delivered by the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Bhavnagar [for short 'ld. Magistrate'] on 11/6/1998 in Criminal Case No. 3312 of 1990. The Ld. Magistrate, by virtue of the impugned judgment, was pleased to acquit the respondents herein, who were original accused in said criminal case, for the offence punishable under Section 16 read with Section 7 (1) of the Prevention of food Adulteration Act [for short 'pfa Act'].

(2.) THE facts leading to the criminal prosecution, in short, are as unde:-

(3.) ON behalf of the appellant-State, Ld. APP Mr. A. J. Desai submitted that the impugned judgment and order delivered by the ld. Magistrate is contrary to law and evidence on record. That the Food Inspector, while collecting the sample, duly followed the mandatory requirements laid down under the PFA Act and the Prevention of Food adulteration Rules, 1955 [for short 'the rules']. No breach of any of the mandatory provisions has been committed by the Food inspector. That the Food Inspector is a public servant and there was no need to discard his testimony and he cannot be termed as interested witness as observed by the Ld. Magistrate in the impugned judgment. Therefore, he submitted that the appeal be allowed and the impugned judgment and order passed by the Ld. Magistrate be set aside and the respondents herein, who were original accused in the aforesaid case, be convicted and appropriately sentenced in accordance with law for the offence punishable under section 16 read with Section 7 of the PFA Act. 3. 1. None appeared on behalf of the respondents.