AMARAVATHI PACKAGING INDUSTRIES Vs. SHANMUGHASUNDARAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) For the sake of convenience, the petitioners and the respondent will be referred to as the accused and complainant respectively.

(2.) It is the case of the complainant that, Jawahar (A2) was his family friend and that, he was the Managing Partner in Amaravathi Packaging Industries (A1), wherein, his (A1's) parents Krishnasamy (A3) and Sulochana (A4) and his wife Jaisri (A5) were the other partners; they borrowed Rs.4,00,000/- on 13.12.2001 for their business and executed some loan documents; when the complainant demanded repayment of the amount, a cheque dated 14.03.2002 (Ex.P1) drawn on the account of M/s.Amaravathi Packaging Industries (A1) with Bank of Madura, Udumalpet Branch, signed by Jawahar (A2), as Managing Partner was issued; the complainant presented the said cheque on 16.03.2002 in Canara Bank, Madathukulam Branch, where he was having his account, but the cheque was returned unpaid with the endorsement "insufficiency of funds" on 18.03.2002 vide return memo (Ex.P2); the complainant issued a statutory demand notice dated 26.03.2002 (Ex.P3) to all the accused and they received it on 28.03.2002 vide postal acknowledgment card (Ex.P4); since the accused did not comply with the demand, the complainant initiated a prosecution in C.C.No.162 of 2005 in the Court of the Judicial Magistrate No.I, Pollachi under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 (for brevity "the NI Act") against the accused.

(3.) On appearance, the accused were questioned under Section 251 Cr.P.C. and they denied the accusation.