MD GHULAM ASGHAR Vs. STATE OF TRIPURA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Mr D.R. Choudhury, learned counsel along with Mr. D. Deb, learned counsel and Mr. S. Choudhury, learned counsel appearing for the appellant as well as Mr. A. Ghosh, learned Public Prosecutor for the State.

(2.) This is an appeal under section 374(2) of the Cr.P.C. against the judgment dated 16.06.2014 delivered in Sessions Trial No. 216 of 2012 by the Additional Sessions Judge, West Tripura, Agartala, No.2 convicting the appellant for commission of offence punishable under Sections 489 (B) and 489(C) of the I.P.C. As consequence of that conviction, the appellant has been sentenced to suffer 5(five) years rigorous imprisonment along with a fine of Rs.5,000/-, in default of payment of fine, to suffer further rigorous imprisonment for 6(six) months.

(3.) The genesis of the prosecution is rooted in the Ejahar filed by the Deputy Manager of Punjab National Bank, Agartala Branch on 16.03.2012 (Exbts.1 & 5) disclosing that two of the depositors namely, Sarwar Hossain and Md. Ghulam Asghar came to deposit Rs.40,000/- (Rupees forty thousand) at about 11.30 am on that day in the name of Ghulam Asghar in the Account No. 4934001500000974. Out of this amount, the accused persons sought to deposit Rs.17,000/- by counterfeit notes and the numbers of those notes have been given in the said Ejahar. Based there on, West Agartala Police Station Case No. 67 of 2012 under Sections 489(B) and 489(C) of the IPC was registered and taken up for investigation. Having completed the investigation, the Investigating Officer namely, Shri Dipak Das (PW- 10) filed the final police report charge-chargesheeting the accused persons. Since the offences are exclusively triable by court of Sessions, those were committed to the court of Sessions Judge and thereafter, it was transferred to the court of the Additional Sessions Judge, West Tripura, Agartala for conducting trial. The charge was against both the accused persons, namely Sarwar Hossain and Md. Ghulam Asghar under Section 489(B) and 489(C) of the IPC to which the accused persons pleaded total innocence and claimed to face the trial.