STATE OF RAJASTHAN Vs. BHERU LAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) State has preferred this Leave to Appeal under Section 378 (iii) and (i) Cr.P.C. to challenge judgment dated 6th of December 2016 passed by Special Judge (Fake Currency Cases) and Addl. District and Sessions Judge, Jaipur (for short, 'learned trial Court') in Sessions Case No.20/15. The learned trial Court, by the impugned order, has acquitted accused respondent of offence under Section 489-B IPC.

(2.) The facts, apposite for the purpose of this Leave to Appeal, are that on 14.04.2015, complainant Shambhulal submitted a written report before SHO, Police Station Deogarh, District Rajsamand, inter-alia, alleging therein that while he was working with co-employee Aslam Khan at M/s. Chandanmal Jain and Sons petrol-pump, on the very same day at about 9 AM, Bherulal Regar came there and handed over six notes in the denomination of Rs. 500 for filling diesel. The report further unfurled that upon checking the notes, suspicion arose about their genuineness and therefore those notes were handed over to the owner of petrol pump Shri Prakashchand Jain and his co-employee Aslam Khan. In the report, it is also averred that the accused respondent used those fake currency notes as original. Pursuant to the report, Case No.132/15 was registered against accused-respondent for offence under Section 498-B IPC. Police, after investigation, submitted challan against the accused-respondent and one more accomplice for offence under Sections 489-B and 120-B IPC in the Court of Addl. Chief Judicial Magistrate, Deogarh, District Rajsamand. Later on, the case was committed to the learned trial Court.

(3.) The learned trial Court, after hearing on charge, discharged co-accused Subhash for the aforesaid offences vide order dated 15th of October, 2015 but framed charge against the accusedrespondent for offence under Section 489-B IPC and on denial was put on trial. During trial, learned trial Court recorded statements of 9 prosecution witnesses and exhibited 12 documents. After conclusion of evidence of the prosecution, accused-respondent was examined under Section 313 Cr.P.C., 1973 and on his behalf police statements of PW4 Ramchandra were exhibited as Ex.D/1. Final arguments were, thereafter, heard and the learned trial Court, by the impugned judgment, recorded its definite finding that neither prosecution has been able to prove that the same notes, which were recovered from the accusedrespondent, are produced before the Court, nor there is any cogent evidence to show that those fake notes were knowingly used by him as genuine. The learned trial Court, with this sort of finding, finally concluded that prosecution has miserably failed to prove the charges beyond all reasonable doubts, which obviously entitles him for benefit of doubt.