PADMANABH Vs. THE STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ISSUE involved in the above applications being one and the same, I propose to dispose of the same by common order. Applicant in the above applications is vendor of the retail food articles including the products manufactured and/or marketed by erstwhile Brooke Bond Lipton India Ltd. Applications are filed under the provisions of Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 to quash and set aside the criminal cases pending in the various Courts against the applicant for the offences punishable under Sections 7(i) read with Section 2(1a)(a), 7(v) read with Rule 55 and Section 7(v) read with Rule 50 of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Rules, 1955 read with Rule 5 of the Maharashtra Prevention of Food Adulteration Act and Rules, 1962 punishable under Sections 16 and 17 of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954.

(2.) FOOD articles in question are mixed fruit jam and orange marmalade. Samples of these food articles were taken by the respondent in the months of January, 1997. Samples thereafter were sent for analysis to the public analyst. Reports of the public analyst were also received by 26.3.1997. Thereafter, respondent/food inspector applied for consent/sanction from the Joint Commissioner. In all the above cases, sanction/consent was accorded on 16.4.1998 after a minimum period of one year. Thereafter, prosecutions came to be filed.

(3.) ALL these matters were placed for hearing on 24th April, 2012 before this Court. After hearing both sides, the learned Single Judge (Coram: R.C. Chavan, J.) of this Court passed the following order: