M D KUPPUSWAMI Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) I am afraid, that under the circumstances of this revision proceedings, whatever the suspicions of the court might be with regard to the culpability of the two revision petitioners, both will have to be acquitted, as the criminal jurisprudence is clear that convictions cannot be based upon mere suspicion or conjecture.

(2.) VERY briefly stated, the facts are, that the two revision petitioners and one watchman were the sole personnel in charge of the Kaveripatnam Co-optex retail depot. The procedure seems to be that this depot places indents for the goods required with the Marketing Officer of the region, who duly supplies the goods for sales to customers at the depot. The two revision petitioners are, respectively, the Assistant Manager of the depot (A. 1) and the Assistant Salesman (A. 2 ). One fact is established beyond any possibility of doubt, and that is, when the Marketting officer, Salem (P. W. 1) visited the depot on 11. 1. 1962 and made an approximate check, he detected a shortfall in the stock of goods to a very appreciable. extent, which was subsequently confirmed by the detailed scrutiny made by the Senior Inspector (P. W. 3) assisted by P. W. 7. In brief, sometime prior to his visit, it is not easy to say when, some goods stocked at this depot had disappeared outright; the charge specifies the value of those goods as Rs. 4482-47 p.

(3.) THERE can be no doubt whatever that, as a matter of civil liability, persons entrusted with the stock in the depot in their official capacities, might properly be held liable for the value of stock which had disappeared, owing to carelessness or negligence or malpractice of any kind on the part of any of this officers. But criminal liability is a totally different matter, and the ingredients of the offence punishable under Section 409 I. P. C. , have been laid down in the Penal Code itself, and in innumerable decisions which need not be recapitulated herein. Not only must there be an initial entrustment of the goods, but there should be a subsequent dishonest conversion to the use of the concerned accused viz. , breach of the trust that alone constitutes criminal breach of trust. In the present ease, the courts have not been inclined to place much reliance upon a receipt for taking over charge of the stock etc. , signed by the Assistant Saleman (A. 2) though such a receipt does exist for all that we know, the defence of A. 2 might be justified that, at the instance of A. 1 who was his official superior, he merely signed this form without noting the purpose for which it was required, when A. 1 went on casual leave, at the request of the superior officer. With regard to A. 1, the suspicions are far stronger whether he acted individually, or in collusion with A. 2. The fact remains, that A. 1 absented himself rather suddenly from the depot, prior to the visit of the Marketing Officer (P. W. 1) after first applying for casual leave and ineffectually applying for extension of that leave.