MADHAB CHANDRA CHARCHARI Vs. NALINI MANNA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS Rule is directed against an appellate order of acquittal passed by the learned Assistant Sessions Judge of Midnapore acquitting the two opposite parties who had been convicted by the trial Magistrate of offence under section 341 of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced each of them to pay a fine of Rs. 25/- in default to suffer rigorous imprisonment for two weeks under that section. In the trial court there were five accused persons including the present opposite parties. The common charge against all of them was one under section 147 of the Indian Penal Code and also under section 341 of the Indian Penal Code. In addition to that charge, the opposite parties Nalini Manna and Kalipada Kulavi and another person named Sudhangsu Das had also been charged for an offence under section 323 of the Indian Penal code and another accused Monoranjan Kulavi was charged under section 426 of the Indian Penal Code. The learned Magistrate acquitted all the accused persons of the charge under section 147 of the Indian Penal Code. He also acquitted Sudhangsu Das, Nalini Manna and Kalipada Kulavi under section 323 of the Indian Penal Code and Monoranjan kulavi of the charge under section 426 of the Indian Penal Code, but he convicted Nalini Manna and kalipada Kulavi of the offence under section 341 of the Indian Penal Code. On appeal that conviction passed against Nalini Manna and Kalipada Kulavi has been set aside. Against that appellate order the de facto complainant Madhav Chandra Charchari moved this Court and the present Rule issued.

(2.) PROSECUTION case briefly is that on 21st of May, 1962 a motor-bus No. WGB 1414 that has been given a name "pusparath" was on its journey on Ghatal-Panskura route in the district of Midnapore with several passengers in it. Madhav Charchari P. W. I, was the conductor of that bus, Gunadhar Khamroy P. W. 3. was the helper of that bus, Gour Hari Bera P. W. 2 was the checker of the bus, and Niranjan Pramanik was the driver. The bus "pusparath" left Ghatal at 7-30 P. M. with several passengers in it besides the driver, conductor, helper and checker above-named. In course of the journey the bus reached a midway point in village goura at about 8-30 P. M. to drop some passengers of the bus and also to pick up some passengers at that station. The bus-stand at Goura is in front of a shop of which the accused Nalini Manna is the proprietor. While taking down some luggages from the top of the bus a bundle of Shal leaves accidentally fell on the conductor Madhav. Madhav expressed his annoyance by uttering some abuses against the helper Gunadhar who, Madhav thought, was responsible for dropping the Shal leaves, although it was the passenger to whom the Shal leaves belonged who had in fact been responsible for dropping the load of Shal leaves. That passenger thought that the abuses uttered by Madhav were directed to him and a quarrel ensued. In that quarrel accused Nalini Manna and Kalipada Kulavi and several other persons intervened and assaulted the conductor and the helper of the bus after restraining the bus with its passengers from proceeding towards its destination. Besides the accused persons some members of the public intervened at that stage and the bus started to move. When the bus had gone only a few yards the accused persons chased the bus in a motor-car and made the bus stop by obstructing its way by putting that motor-car in front of the bus and prevented it from proceeding on the way with the several passengers that were in it. Prosecution alleges that at this stage also the conductor was again assaulted and some damage was done to the bus itself by the accused persons. Only when the passengers in the bus showed their resentment at being wrongfully restrained that way from proceeding in the way they had a right to proceed, that the bus was allowed to continue its journey. The bus reached its destination at Ghatal that night and on the next day, that is, the 22nd of May, 1962 at 11 A. M. an information was lodged in the Daspur Police Station which is 7 miles south from the place of occurrence alleging therein all the details of the alleged incident and naming the accused persons by mention of the particular acts alleged against each of them.

(3.) ON these allegations the five accused persons were charged by the learned Magistrate as mentioned above. The charge under section 341 of the Indian Penal Code was framed in these terms: