DURGADAS TULSIRAM SOOD Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These are two appeals by accused Nos. 1 and 2. Appeal No. 672 is an appeal by accused No. 2 and Appeal No. 807 is an appeal by accused No. 1. These are appeals from a judgment of the learned Presidency Magistrate, 23rd Court, Esplanade, Bombay, by which judgment the learned Magistrate has convicted both the accused of offences under Section 120-B of the Indian Penal Code, Section 465 read with Section 34, Section 468 read with Section 34, Section 471 read with Sections 465 and 34 and Section 420 read with Section 511 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code.

(2.) Originally there were three accused persons in this case. The gravamen of the charge against them was that there was a criminal conspiracy between them to forge an auditors' certificate the purport of which was to show that the past imports of Goldberg India Ltd., for the year 1947-48 received at the port of Bombay were of the value of Rs. 1,15,710 and the purpose of which was to induce the Chief Controller of Imports, Bombay, to grant to the Goldberg India Ltd., an import licence for the amount Of Rs. 28,927. The object of the conspirators is alleged to have been to use the above said forged certificate of the auditors as a genuine document for the purpose of cheating the Chief Controller of Imports and inducing him to grant to the Goldberg India Ltd., an import licence for Rs. 28,927. It may be noted at this stage that, according to the case of the prosecution, the past imports of the Goldberg India Ltd., for the year 1947-48 were of the value of Rs. 12,360 and that on that basis the company was entitled to an import licence for the amount of Rs. 3,090. In other words, the charge against the accused was under Section 120-B read with Sections 465, 468, 471 and 420 read with Section 511 of the Indian Penal Code.

(3.) The other charge against the accused was that there was a common object on the part of all of them to forge an auditors' certificate the purport of which was to show that the past imports of the Goldberg India Ltd., for the year 1947-48 received at the port of Bombay were of the value of Rs. 1,15,710 and the purpose of which was to induce the Chief Controller of Imports to grant to the Goldberg India Ltd., an import licence for the amount of Rs. 28,927. The common object of them all further was to use the said forged certificate of the auditors as a genuine document for cheating the Chief Controller of Imports, Bombay, and inducing the Chief Controller to grant to the Goldberg India Ltd., an import licence for Rs. 28,927. In other words, the charge was under Section 465 read with Section 34, Section 468 read with Section 34, Section 471 read with Section 34 and Section 420 read with Sections 511 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code.