JAGADISH B RAO Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This judgement will dispose of the revision applications of Jag-dish Rao (Criminal Revision Application No. 42/73) and that of Alfred dos Santos Braganza (Criminal Revision Application No. 49/73) as both these matters arise out of one and the same incident. The petitioner/accused Jagdish Rao is a journalist by profession. He was the editor, owner, publisher and printer of a fortnightly paper called "The Blade". He was prosecuted by Alfred dos Santos Braganza Respondent No.1 complainant for the publication of a certain defamatory news items. It was alleged that in the issue of "The Blade" dated 10-7-1968 the accused published a news item in bold headlines captioned "Come Braganza, What's On ?", wherein the accused referred to the complainant as the most hated man of Diwar and alleged that the complainant had recently co-opted four or five members to the Association of St. Francis Xavier, commonly called as "Asilo" in a dictatorial fashion, who are "out and out" the complainant's stooges. It is also alleged that the imputations made in the said news item must have created a suspicion in the minds of the readers that the complainant has misappropriated the funds of "Asilo" under the garb of distributing them to the poor. At this juncture it may be mentioned that the complainant is a member of the said Asilo, a charitable institution in the village Piedade, from where the complainant hails. He was the President of the managing committee of the said "Asilo" at the relevant time.

(2.) According to the complainant he felt that the news item had damaged his reputation in the society and he therefore wrote a letter (Exhs. P-3(b) and (c) to the accused giving certain facts by way of reply to the said news item and made a request that the said letter be published in the next issue of "The Blade". Instead of publishing the said letter the accused published another news item in the issue of "The Blade" of 5-8-68 entitling it, "Racketeer Alfred Braganza", wherein he again reiterated in an insinuating manner that the complainant was the most hated man of Diwar for the alleged misuse of the funds of Asilo because of the said racket. The accused also called upon the readers to read the next issue of "The Blade".

(3.) Thereupon the complainant lodged a complaint on 3-9-68 before the J.M. F.C., Panaji, charging the accused with the offence of defamation punishable under Section 500 of the I.P.C.