MD AMIR HUSSAIN Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Having found the two accused Petitioners herein guilty of the offence under Section 3(a) of the Railway Properties (Unlawful) Possession Act, 1966, in CR case No. 90/2005, the learned Special Railway Magistrate, Kamrup, convicted them accordingly and sentenced them to suffer simple imprisonment for three months each with further direction that the seized materials to be delivered to the Railways. As the appeal, preferred by the accused-Petitioners, which gave rise to Criminal Appeal No. 89/2009, has been dismissed by the learned Additional Judge No. 2, Kamrup, by judgment and order, dated 31.8.2010, the accused Petitioners have impugned the same in this petition made under Section 432 Code of Criminal procedure.

(2.) I have heard Ms. M. Bora, learned Counsel, for the accused-Petitioners, and Mr V.S. Singh, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, Assam.

(3.) The case of the prosecution, as unfolded at the trial, may, in brief, be described, thus On 11.11.2005, at about 5.15 hours, the RPF Officers, and staff of Rangia RPF post conducted raid in the section between Goreswar and Khandikar Railway Station against theft of Railway materials and during the course of raid at about 8.55 hours, they caught red-handed accused Md. Amir Hussain near the level crossing gate, when he was proceeding by his bicycle with a gunny bag containing some Railway materials. During investigation, accused Md. Amir Hussain disclosed that he was hawker under accused Mohsin Ali and used to sell the Railway materials to him. Thereafter, on being led by him, the RPF personnel went to the scrap godown of accused Md. Mohsin Ali and, on conducting a search there, some more Railway materials were recovered and the same Were seized. A case was accordingly registered, an enquiry was held and, on completion of enquiry, prosecution report, under Section 3(a) of the Railway Property (Unlawful Possession) Act, 1966 ('the said Act') was laid against both the accused persons.