CHANDAN LAL Vs. NAND LAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS order will dispose of Criminal Revisions No. 106 and 107 of 1979 filed by Chandan Lal Agarwal against two orders of Judicial Magistrate, Nawa both dated January 29, 1979 passed by him accepting final reports Nos. 14 and 15 of 1979 submitted by the Officer-in-charge, Police Station, Nawa after rejecting the protest petitions filed by the petitioner.

(2.) FACTS leading to the filing of these revisions are that on February 10, 1978 petitioner Chandan Lal Agarwal filed a criminal complaint against Nand Lal Mor with the allegations that he was proprietor of M/s. Rajasthan Gum and Plastic Factory, Nawa (Kuchaman Road), which manufactured "guwar Churi", corma, cattle, feed and ''guwar gum". Non-petitioner Nandlal Mor used to work as a temporary manager to look after the factory. On January 25, 1977 the non-petitioner misusing his position, as temporary Manager represented himself as selling agent of, the factory and without the knowledge of the petitioner; received amounts of Rs. 2000/-, Rs. 2100/r and Rs. 1500/- respectively from Hari Bandhubohol of Shergarh, district. Baleshwar (Orissa), Antaryami Chaudhary of Baran Khoonta district Mayurganj (Orissa) and M/s S. R. Moondra of Naya Bazar, Distt, Balasore (Orissa), agreeing with them respectively to supply them 50 quintals "guwar churi" ,at Rs. 95,/- per quintal,! 41 quintals guwar corma at Rs. i02/-'per quintal and 51 bags of , "guwar churi" weighing 75 kilo grams each bags at Rs. 95/- per quintal and further (issued receipt of the advance arhounts received by him on the printed letter-pad of the petitioner's factory. It was alleged that, the petitioner had never appointed the non-petitioner as selling agent and had never authorised him to supply the goods manufactured tin the factory of the petitioner after receiving advance amounts from customers. The non-petitioner neither got these transactions entered into by him in the book of accounts of the factory nor got credited the, receipts of advance amounts from the above-named three customers. These customers made correspondence '•at the address of the petitioners factory insisting for supply the goods agreed to be supplied which correspondence letters were also kept back by the non-petitioner and the transactions were cancelled from the petitioner. On coming to know1 of some improper acts of the non-petitioner, the petitioner removed the former from the post of temporary manager. There after the petitioner obtained full information about non-receipt of goods, ordered by the said customers when after seeing the records, he found that no such-transactions were entered 'in the records, he made enquiries and came: to know that the non-petitioner misrepresenting himself as selling agent of the petitioner's factory had received advance amounts from these. customers by cheating them and causing wrongful loss to the petitioner by misappropriating the amounts received as advance. He also1 impersonated himself as selling agent of the petitioner's factory by issuing receipts of advence amounts to the customers. It was stated by the petitioner in his complaint that the non-petitioner had committed offence punishable under Section 420, 467,'406, 408 and 409, I. P. C. This criminal complaint was sent by the Judicial Magistrate Nawa to the Police under Sec. 156 (3) Cr. P. C. for investigation. After investigation, the officer-in-charge, Police Station, Nawa gave final report No. 15 dated July 31, 1978. The petitioner submitted a protest petition before the Judicial Magistrate, Nawa on August 9,1978. The Judicial Magistrate, Nawa, after hearing the petitioner's counsel on the protest petition, rejected it on January 29, 1979 and refused to take cognizance of the offences alleged to have been committed by the non-petitioner. It is against this order that the petitioner has filed Criminal Revision No. 106 of 1979 in this Court.

(3.) I have also gone through both the final reports of the police and the statements of witnesses recorded under Section 161 Cr. P. C. by the police during the course of investigation and copies of documents produced from both the sides and I am also of the view that there were not sufficient grounds for the Judicial Magistrate, Nawa for proceeding under section 204 Cr. P. C. and he rightly dropped the proceedings. There was no evidence worth believable that Nand Lal Mor had been employed by the petitioner as temporary manager on a monthly salary of Rs. 400/- as stated by Chandan Lal in his statement. The lump sum debiting of two amounts of Rs. 5000/- each on October 29, 1977 and October 30, 1977 as salary of Nand Lal Mor by the petitioner in the rokar, after dissensions had arisen between him and Nand Lal Mor, itself throws a grave and serious default in the truthfulness of the version of the petitioner. It was also prima facie borne out that Nand Lal Mor held a sound financial status and had his own salt business. It is hard to believe that such a person would become an employee of Chandan Lal petitioner on a meagre salary of Rs. 400/- per month. There is evidence that Nand Lal Mor had advanced loans of various amounts on various dates to the petitioner's factory as appears from confirmations of loan account signed by the petitioner and Nand Lal Mor. In that relationship he and his sons used to look after the petition's factory as Chandan Lal was mostly in Orissa in connection of his some other business there. Nand Lal Mor has even filed a suit for the recovery of one lac rupees against the petitioner in the Court of District Judge, Merta on December 14, 1977. The copies of the alleged receipts of advance money produced by Chandan Lal before the police were not on the letter pads of the petitioner's factory as had been alleged by the petitioner in his complaint. Looking to all these factors, there did not exist sufficient grounds before the Magistrate to proceed further in both the cases and he rightly dropped the proceeding in both the cases on receiving Final Reports No. 14 and 15 from the S. H. O. Police Station, Nawa.