CHARAN KHELANI Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) All the three Criminal Miscellaneous applications are directed against the orders which are common in nature. They have been heard together and a common judgment is being passed.

(2.) The petitioner, in all the cases, is one Charan Khelani who is the Managing Director of Lumbini Beverage Pvt. Ltd., Hajipur, Vaishali. He seeks quashing of orders dated 18-8-2004 (all the three orders in three different cases have been passed on the same day). The aforesaid orders have been passed in Complaint Cases Nos. 50(O)/04, 48(O)/04 and 51(O)/04. The orders in all such cases are the orders taking cognizance for the offences under Sections 16(1)(a)(i) of Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 (hereinafter referred to as the "Act").

(3.) Three prosecution reports were filed against the petitioner. This was on the basis of prosecution launched by the Food Inspector who, on the same day, procured three bottles of Mirinda, Pepsi cold drinks and cold drink by the name of Slice from the shop of one Sunil Kumar at Piro, in the district of Bhojpur. The aforesaid samples of cold drinks were sent for analysis. The report of the Public Analyst disclosed that the sample of Mirinda was adulterated because of the presence of foreign matter and was also misbranded because of violation of Rule 32 of Prevention of Food Adulteration Rules. The samples of Pepsi and Slice were also found to be adulterated because of such violation of Prevention of Food Adulteration Rules, leading to the inference that all the three samples were found to be misbranded.