Y M KOLI Vs. DHAVLU AJABA KOKANI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Food Inspector of Nandurbar Municipal Council has preferred this appeal against the acquittal of the accused by the Judicial Magistrate, First Class Nandurbar, in Criminal Case No.1204 of 1975. The said case was with respect to an offence under section 7(1) read with section 16(1)(a)(i) of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954, (hereinafter referred to as "the said Act").

(2.) As the appeal deserves to be dismissed on a very short point, it is not necessary to give all the details of the offence in the case. Suffice it to say that on 17-4-1970, at 9-0 a.m. the complainant Food Inspector Y.M. Koli, took a sample of milk from the accused after following the necessary procedure. The sample was divided into three parts. One of the parts was sent to the Public Analyst, on 23-4-1970 for examination and report, the Public Analyst prepared a report dated 26th June 1970 that the sample contained 17-8% added water so as to make the sample adulterous. The said report was received by the complainant on 18-7-1970. The complainant filed a case against the accused after about five years viz., on 23-7-1975. Copies of the relevant documents including the copy of the Public Analyses report was served on the accused on 1-8-1975. Thereafter the case was heard by the learned Judicial Magistrate, who acquitted the accused on various grounds.

(3.) Section 13(2) of the said Act gives a right to the accused to have the remaining parts, of the sample analysed by the Central Food Laboratory. The very purpose of this section is that the accused should have an opportunity to verify as to whether the report of the Public Analyst is worthy to be acceptable. In the present case, the accused had not made any such application to the trial Magistrate that the other sample should be sent to the Central Food Laboratory. There is, thus no evidence by the Central Food Laboratory.