DHANJI RAM SHARMA Vs. THE STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is an appeal of Dhanji Ram Sharma who has been found guilty on three separate counts under sections 474/467, 471/467 and 420/511, Indian Penal Code. On the first two charges the appellant has been awarded sentence of rigorous imprisonment for two years each and on the third one for one year only. The three sentences being concurrent, the appellant has thus to undergo an aggregate imprisonment under the order impugned for a period of two years.

(2.) THE prosecution of the appellant for the various offences of which he has been found guilty is the outcome of a raid of his house in Maliwara on 30th of September 1956 following the information which had been given earlier by Sarwan Kumar who is the principal witness for the prosecution. According to the statement, Exhibit P. 1/1, which Sarwan Kumar made to the Deputy Superintendent of Police Roshan Lal on the day when the raid was organized he had for some time been employed as a Publicity Clerk in Filmistan Distributors in the year 1955 when he came to know the appellant who used to visit him in his office during the month of February. They both came to know each other because the appellant used to ask for free cinema passes which Sarwan Kumar readily arranged for him. Sarwan Kumar left his employment with the Filmistan Distributors sometime in October -November 1955 and after having spent a few months in his village where he was taken ill he came to Delhi in search of employment. In a chance meeting with the appellant, Sarwan Kumar was promised his assistance in the shape of a share in the profits which accrued from the sale of spurious rail tickets to intending purchasers. The modus operandi briefly was to be that Sarwan Kumar was to bring prospective passengers who were to be given fictitious rail tickets on nominal prices which were much less than the scheduled rates and he was to derive reward for his labours by payment of commission and expenses.

(3.) IN a subsequent meeting between Sarwan Kumar and the appellant it was arranged that four second class tickets from Delhi to Howrah would be sold for Rs. 25/2/ - a piece to intending purchasers. This represented one -half of the actual fare between the two stations. Sarwan Kumar was to hand over these four tickets which were actually to be issued from Rewari to Mughalserai for the use of passengers along with two return tickets from Mughalserai to Delhi. Sarwan Kumar was to purchase four genuine tickets for these passengers from Mughalserai to Howrah, which would have cost him approximately Rs. 80/ - Swaran Kumar was to get a sum of Rs. 10/ - for pocket expenses and Rs. 5/ - per passenger ticket as commission.