EDWARD EZRA Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These appeals are succeeding on two legal grounds concerning the validity of the trial at which the Appellants were convicted and it is therefore hardly necessary to state any facts other than those which bear on those grounds. The trial was held under the provisions of the Criminal Law Amendment Ordinance (29 of 1943). It appears that after the Ordinance had been promulgated, it was amended eleven times and adapted twice, with the undetected result that the thread of continuity, at least as regards the constitution of the Tribunal by which the Appellants were being tried, had snapped at a vital point. It was also overlooked that while the trial was proceeding under a special law, the new Constitution of India had come into force with its declarations of fundamental rights.

(2.) These are five appeals before us. The appellant in Appeal No. 95 is Major J. Phillips who was Accused No. 1 in the ease and had been, at all material times, the Controller of Telegraphs Stores, Alipore. The appellant in Appeal No. 94 is Captain A. J, Rodrigues who was accused No. 2 & had been the Deputy Assistant Engineer, Purchase Section, The appellant in Appeal No. 93 is Jagat Bhusan Biswas who was Accused No. 4 and had been the Stock-Holder, Wire Godown. The appellant in Appeal No. 92 is Edward Ezra who was accused No. 6 and had supplied large quantities of copper strips and Mclntyre sleeves to tne Telegraph Stores. Appeal No. 96 is by Nanda Lal Dey, accused No, 7, who also had been a supplier of stores and had supplied, besides copper strips and Mclntyre sleeves, large quantities of bolts and nuts.

(3.) Along with the appellants, two other persons were placed on their trial as accused Nos. 3 and 5. Accused No. 3 was one Dasarathi Mukherjee who had been the Sub-store-Keeper of the Construction Branch, but as he died during the course of the trial, the prosecution as against him abated. Accused No. 5 was one Dhruba Chandra Banerjee who had been the Purchase Clerk in the Telegraph Storeyard at all relevant times. He turned approver and gave evidence as a prosecution witness.