JAGTAR SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Tersely, the facts & material, culminating in the commencement, relevant for deciding the core controversy, involved in the instant petition and emanating from the record are that, on the complaint of complainant Tara Singh son of Tek Singh (for brevity "the complainant"), a criminal case was registered against petitioner Jagtar Singh BDPO, along with his other co-accused Sukhpal Singh, SDO Panchayati Raj, Paramjit Singh BDPO, Talwandi Sabo, Thana Singh Panchayat Secretary, Ashok Kumar & Narinder Kumar, JEs, Gurdarshan Singh DDPO, Mahla Singh Sarpanch, Nachhattar Singh & Kulwant Singh Members Panchayat, vide FIR No.126 dated 22.9.2002, on accusation of having committed the offences punishable under sections 409, 465, 467, 471, 477-A and 120-B IPC by the police of Police Station Raman, District Bathinda.

(2.) The case set up by the prosecution, in brief in so far as relevant, was that the land of Gram Panchayat of village Phulokheri was acquired by the appropriate State for establishment of Refinery and panchayat had received an amount of Rs. 1,36,00,000/- as compensation. The Sarpanch in collusion with the indicated accused, have embezzled the huge amount of the Gram Panchayat in the following manner as depicted in the final police report (Annexure P2):-

(3.) Leveling a variety of allegations and narrating the sequence of events in detail as contained in the final police report, in all, the prosecution claimed that petitioner along with his other co-accused hatched a criminal conspiracy, cheated, misappropriated the huge amount of the Gram Panchayat, prepared the false record/bills committing forgery for the purpose of cheating, used the forged bills/documents as genuine and falsified the accounts in this relevant connection. In the background of these allegations, the present criminal case was registered against the accused in the manner depicted here-in-above.