BHANWAR LAL Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE revision application before me is by one Bhanwarlal, who is standing trial for an offence under sec. 3/7 of the Essential Commodities Act 1955, in the court of the Additional District Magistrate Jodhpur.

(2.) ON August 8, 1966, an application was made before the learned trial magistrate on behalf of the accused petitioner that the challan against the accused was not maintainable and the accused should accordingly be discharged. It was urged in the application that the accused was only having his shop where he sold sweetmeats and namkin, but the shop was not a catering establishment. It was also urged in the application that the imposition of restriction on supply of foodstuffs by the State Government was invalid. The learned Magistrate heard the matter and ordered that the definition of the term 'caterring establishment' was wide enough even to include a shop or any other place of refreshment open to the the public. In other words, according to the learned magistrate, if at a shop prepared food articles are sold, though such articles are not served on any table in the shop, the shop would come under the definition of the term "catering establishments'. As regards the validity of the Government order imposing restrictions on supply of foodstuffs, the learned magistrate observed that it was for the accused to raise the question before the High Court, as in his view such restrictions were valid. In the result, the application was dismissed. The accused then approached the learned Sessions Judge in revision for making a reference, but he was not successful. It is in these circumstances that he has approached this Court in revision.