RAJA JALAN Vs. STATE OF ASSAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These two criminal petitions under Section 482, Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 ('the Code' and/or 'the CrPC', for short) have been preferred by the same petitioner who is facing the criminal prosecutions as one of the accused in respect of 2 (two) complaint cases C.R. Case no. 3192/2010 & C.R. Case no. 3193/2010 which are presently pending before the Court of learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Barpeta ('the trial court', for short). The criminal prosecutions have been launched against the petitioner for commission of offences under Section 7 read with Section 16 of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 ('the PFA Act', for short).

(2.) The food item in respect of complaint case, C.R. Case no. 3192/2010 is 'bread' whereas the food item involved in complaint case, C.R. Case no. 3193/2010 is 'suji rusk'. As the samples of bread and suji rusk were taken by the concerned Food Inspector from the same vendor at the same time and date, the facts involved in both the complaints are similar, save and except the food items involved. In that view of the matter, the facts stated in Complaint Case, C.R. Case no. 3192/2010 are taken up for discussion herein for convenience.

(3.) On 29.04.2010, the Food Inspector in order to check the quality of bread, kept stored for sale for human consumption, in the name and style of "Bread (Perfect Butter Slice)" met a salesman who has been made accused no. 1 in the complaint case. The present petitioner has been named as accused no. 2 in the complaint case. The Food Inspector gave his identity to the salesman of M/s Jyoti Food Products, Barpeta Road, who is the manufacturer of "Bread (Perfect Butter Slice)" and expressed his intention to check the quality of the food items.