BELSAND SUGAR CO LTD Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners have come up to this Court for quashing the processing of a case instituted against them under Section 38 of the Bihar Weights and Measures (Enforcement) Act, 1959, read with Rule 24(iii)(a) of the Rules made under that Act. It was alleged that, when the Inspector of Weights and Measures made a surprise raid in the premises of the Belsand Sugar Mills at Riga in the district of Muzaffarpur on the 25th November, 1960, he checked 16 bags of sugar and found some shortage in the weight of 15 bags. The weight noted on each of the bags was 2 maunds 30 seers, and in 13 of them the shortage found was 1 chhatak or near about that quantity. In three bags, however, bearing Nos. 6761, 6428 and 5828, the shortage was to the extent of 4 chhataks, 4 1/2 chhataks and 3 1/2 chhataks, respectively. A petition of complaint was filed before the Subdivisional Magistrate of Sitamarhi by the Inspector on the 28th November, 1960, in respect of the shortages found in these three bags. Along with the petition of complaint was attached a note of the Inspector's inspection, in which he said that he seized the three bags of sugar on account of the aforesaid shortages which were weighed in his presence. It was not stated either in the petition of complaint or in the note of inspection, which the Inspector calls "seizure list", that the bags of sugar were meant for sale. The accused named in the petition of complaint were M/S Belsand Sugar Co. Ltd., Riga, and three gentlemen, who are the Secretary, the Chief Chemist and the Manufacturing Chemist of the said sugar mills.

(2.) The defence was that the prosecution was misconceived, inasmuch as Section 33 of the said Act did not apply to the instant case; on account of the provisions contained in Section 46 of the said Act, the relevant provisions of the Bihar Weights Act, 1947, applied. This objection was rejected by the learned Munsif Magistrate, to whom the case had been transferred by the Subdivisional Magistrate for trial. An application in revision against the said order of the Munsif Magistrate was rejected by the Sessions Judge of Muzaffarpur. Three of the accused then filed the present application in revision to this Court; and Mr. A. N. Sahai, who appeared for the petitioners, stated that probably on account of oversight the Chief Chemist of the mills was not impleaded as a party to this application in revision to this Court. That will not, however, be material, if Mr. Sahai's contention is accepted.

(3.) Mr. Sahai contended that the prosecution is misconceived in fact and in law. Section 46 of the 1959 Act lays down that in case the Central Government has issued a notification under Section 14 of the Central Act known as Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1956, permitting for a certain time the continuance of the use, in respect of the same class of goods or undertakings, of such weights and measures (in addition to the standards of mass and measures) as are specified in the notification, then-