RAMESHWAR VIDHYRAM AGRAWAL Vs. R T BORADE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS appeal is filed against the judgment and order of acquittal recorded by the learned Judicial Magistrate, First Class, Sillod, in Summary Case No. 107 of 1990. The present appellant filed the complaint before the learned Judicial Magistrate. He alleged that he was the owner of Hotel Naresh located at Sillod abutting Jalgaon-Aurangabad Highway, while the accused, present respondent No. 1, is the publisher of the Fortnightly Newspaper Suraksha Sandesh. In the issue dated 16-2-1990, the accused published a news item on the first page of the issue and that caused defamation of the complainant and, therefore, the complaint for offences punishable under sections 500 and 501 of the Indian Penal Code was filed.

(2.) THE learned Judicial Magistrate, after recording the evidence of the complainant and his witness, and after examining the accused under section 313 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, came to the conclusion that the complainant failed to prove his case and, therefore, acquitted the accused, the present respondent No. 1, of both the offences.

(3.) THE complainant examined himself and has examined one witness Bhaskar Raghunath Prashad in support of his case. The complainant has contended that on 26-1-1990, the accused and the witness Bhaskar came to his hotel at about 10. 30 to 11. 00 a. m. to take tea. The accused then demanded Rs. 2,000/- from the complainant as a help for the newspaper he was publishing and for giving an advertisement of his hotel in the newspaper. But the complainant denied to place any advertisement in his newspaper and to pay Rs. 2,000/ -. Being aggrieved by this denial, in the issue dated 16-2-1990, the accused published the news item. The details of the news item are given in the complaint, as well as the issue dated 16-2-1990 is produced on record. For the purposes of this judgment, it is not necessary to go into the details of the news item.