NISAR AHMAD Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a revision by the applicant, Nisar Ahmad, who was a postman at Fyzabad Post Office, against his conviction under Sec. 52 of the Indian Post Office Act VI of 1898 on a charge of having secreted unpaid letters received by post at Fyzabad and having misappropriated certain sum of money paid as charges for these letters by the addressees. He was sentenced to six months' R.I. and to a fine of Rs. 100/ -, in default to undergo one month's further rigorous imprisonment. The conviction and sentence passed against him were maintained in appeal by the Sessions Judge.

(2.) The prosecution story, briefly, is that on the 5th August, 1949, Tulshiram, Postmaster of the Head Post Office, Fyzibad, who had taken over charge of the Post Office two days before the date of occurrence, made a surprise checking of the mail bags of the post peons who were ready to start from the Post Office. In the bag of Nisar Ahmad he found unpaid business reply postcards and envelopes the charges in respect of which were recoverable from the addressees. In the account books a sum of Rs. 3/6/9 was entered as the amount of the charges in respect of business reply postcards and envelopes handed over to Nisar Ahmad but on checking it was found that Nisar Ahmad's bag contained business reply postcards and envelopes the charges in respect of which were -/7/ -more than 3/6/9 entered in the account books. Nisar Ahmad's explanation was that he had received the letters from Kesho Prasad, Sorting Postman, and there was no mali fide on his part. In the account books, therefore, -/7/ - were added to the amount already entered there and the applicant went out on his duty to deliver postal articles. In the evening, Nisar Ahmad voluntarily gave to the Postmaster a sum of Rs. 1/13/9 and stated that unpaid business reply postcards and envelopes, the charges against which amounted to Rs. 1/13/9 had also been given to him by Kesho' Prasad, Sorting Postman, besides, these the charges recoverable against which it had already been entered in the account books. On this, inquiry was made and it was found that on that date the applicant had actually delivered unpaid business reply articles for Rs. 6/1/(sic)3 to the seed merchants in his area. The applicant, therefore, after paying Rs. 1/13/9 voluntarily, had still not accounted for Rs. (sic)/5/9. He had delivered as many as 83 postcards and one envelope on that date to the seed merchants. On these facts he was charged under Sec. 52 of the Indian Post Office Act and Sec. 409 of the Indian Penal Code. Daring the course of the inquiry, Nisar Ahmad had made a statement to the Postmaster which is Ex. 136 on the record. The prosecution case is that in the said statement he had admitted most of the allegations that were levelled against him. He had also stated that there was a constant fraud practised by the Sorting Postman and, as the applicant's courage failed, he brought the facts to the notice of the Postmaster in the evening of that day when he surrendered a part of the amount.

(3.) Four persons were sent up for trial before the Magistrate. Two of them were discharged by the learned Magistrate and Ram Prasad, one of the accused, was acquitted by him.