RAMESH CHANDRA AND ANR. Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) RAMESH Chandra and his father Shiv Prasad Gupta have filed this application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure praying that the proceedings pending against them in Criminal Case No. 574 of 1976 State v. Ramesh Chand and Ors. pending before the Judicial Magistrate Bhognipur, Kanpur be quashed or in the alternative they be transferred to Mainpuri.

(2.) ON 3rd May 1969 a First Information Report was lodged at police station Bhognipur, by Sri Simrat Singh to the effect that Truck No. 7253 USF was owned by him and miscellaneous articles booked from Indor were brought by two drivers Nand Lal and Lallu. In the morning of 3rd May 1969, his cleaner came to him at Birhana Road Kanpur and told him that the articles had been brought to Kalpi gate and after crossing the river by boat they had again been loaded in the truck on Kanpur side. The cleaner further informed him that he and Lallu Singh went to take meals in the hotel and just then there was rain and thunder storm and when they returned at about 1.00 O'clock in the night of 1st May 1969 they found that the truck in question had been driven away by some person. The police registered a case and took up the investigation. During the investigation it was discovered that the three unknown companions of the driver were Sarvasri Balbir Singh, Sohan Lal Chawala and Ram Sanehi Pandit. On 4th and 5th May 1969 the police raided the lower portion of the house of the two applicants and from there recovered certain articles alleged to have been loaded in the truck in question. After completing the investigation the police submitted a charge -sheet dated 4th July 1976 against the two applicants as well as Balbir Singh. Consequently on 2nd February 1976 the Judicial Magistrate Bhognipur passed the following order:

(3.) THE applicants pray for the quashing of the proceedings inter alia on the grounds -