STATE OF U P Vs. LAVKUSH KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a government appeal against the judgment and order of Sri P. Bishnoi, II Addl. District and Sessions Judge, Mirzapur dt. 31-3-1977 passed in S.T. No. 168-A of 1974 State v. Lavkush Kumar acquitting all the three accused-respondents of the offences punishable under Ss. 395 and 353, I.P.C.

(2.) The prosecution case is that during the days of the occurrence Hari Mohan Prasad (P.W.I) was posted as Inspector, Central Excise Department in Allahabad Division and Mirzapur also was within his jurisdiction. On 24-8-1971 he had gone to Mirzapur for surprise checking. On 25-8-1971 at 4.30 p.m. while patrolling on the road he found that some copper alloys circles were being carried on a cart from the, rolling mills of Bihari Lal. Ram Prasad Upadhya (P.W.3) the Jamadar of the said rolling mill was accompanying the said cart. The Inspector (P.W.I) stopped the said cart for the purposes of checking and demanded Gate-Pass from them. The cartpullers handed over the Gate-pass to the said inspector who found that although the name of Amar Nath consignee was mentioned therein, yet his full address was missing. His address could not be supplied by the cart-pullers or the Jamadar (P.W.3). They also could not tell him where they were carrying the goods. He got suspicious that perhaps the consignment was being taken away without payment of Central Excise Duty. He seized the goods and started investigation into the matter. He took the seized goods in the said cart to the Pratap Rolling Mills where he got the alloys circles weighed. The said weight and the number of the circles tallied with the particulars given in the Gate-Pass. Weighment-sheet was got prepared from B.P. Misra (P.W.2) who was then locally posted as Inspector of Excise. All this was completed by 7.25 P.M. Hari Mohan Prasad (P.W.I) the Inspector started taking down statements of the labourers who were carrying the alloys circles in the said cart. Just then son of Sri Govind Das who was a partner in firm Badri Prasad Hari Das arrived there and told one of the labourers not to give any statement. However, the said labourer made the statement and signed the same. After sometime Lavakush Kumar accused-respondent arrived there and told the Inspector (P.W.I) in strong language that he had made the seizure wrongly so he should hand over the alloys circles to him otherwise it would not be good for the Inspector. The Inspector told him that the Gate-Pass was not properly filled in and was invalid. Lavakush Kumar, accused-respondent told that the Inspector that the said alloys circles had come from his mill known as Bihari Lal Umar Roiling Mills. The Inspector (P.W.I) told Lavkush Kumar, accused-respondent that the goods in question had been seized by him so he should approach the higher authorities for getting them released. Lavkush Kumar, accused-respondent told the Inspector (P.W.I) to wait for about ten minutes so that he could bring his father. Saying so Lavkush Kumar, accused-respondent left on his motor-cycle.

(3.) The Inspector (P.W.I) apprehending use of force on the part of Lavkush Kumar, accused-respondent sent B.P. Misra, Inspector (P.W.2) to the Kotwali for police aid. He left for Kotwali.