SACHIDANAND Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a reference by the learned Additional Sessions Judge of Banaras recommending that the conviction of Sachidanand and Suraj Bali under Section 379, I. P. C. and the sentence of Rs. 50/- on each of them may be set aside and that they may be tried afresh if necessary.

(2.) Sachidanand and Suraj Bali were employed as watchmen in the goods shed of the O. T. Railway (now North-Eastern Railway) at Banaras. On 14-4-1952 at about midnight Sri N.G. Mitra, Assistant Inspector of the Watch and Ward Department made a surprise checking of the goods shed and he found the two accused tampering with and taking out contents from a package lying in the goods shed. He caught them & found two 'jholas' in their possession containing phials of 'Anand Mohini Zarda' and iron implements for breaking the packages. He took these two accused to the Government Railway Police at Banaras Station and lodged a report. The accused denied that they had committed the theft. Their case was that some thieves had broken open the package and taken out the contents and were running away with the 'jholas' when they, being on duty, suspected them to be thieves and chased them to a distance of about 200 paces; and that in the meantime the Assistant Inspector Sri Mitra who was coming from the opposite direction arrested them on the suspicion that they were thieves. Their case was that they had been falsely implicated by Sri Mitra as they had made a representation against him for taking illegal gratification.

(3.) The case was tried summarily ,by the learned Magistrate. The prosecution examined two witnesses, namely, Sri N.G. Mitra and Kishan Lal Chowkidar who is said to have been called there by Sri Mitra. The learned Magistrate believed the evidence of Sri Mitra and convicted and sentenced the two accused as has been mentioned above.