SOMNATH PURI Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) APPELLANT S. N. Puri, a Traffic Assistant in the Indian Air Lines Corporation of India (hereinafter called 'i. A. C.)' at Jaipur, collected certain monies from intending passengers for trunk call telephone charges and deposited only a part thereof, and has been convicted by the learned Special Judge, Rajas-than, Jaipur City on 31-8-1966 under sec. 409 of the Indian Penal Code and sec. 5 (2) read with sec. 5 (2) read with sec. 5 (l) (c) and 5 (l) (d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947 and a fine of Rs. 250/ -. The sentences have been ordered to run concurrently. , The total fine of Rs. 500/- if not paid the appellant has been ordered to suffer another 6 months' rigorous imprisonment. He has come up in appeal.

(2.) IN the year 1962 appellant was employed as a Traffic Assistant in the I. A. C. Jaipur Whenever all seats allotted to Jaipur in the I. A. C. air service were already booked but there were more passengers who desired to travel from Jaipur the practice was that the Jaipur Office by means of telephone trunk calls tried to get seats from other Airports released with a view to accommodate these intending passengers and collected from them estimated cost of telephone charges in advance. The appellant when on duty collected these charges and made efforts to provide seats to the waiting passengers. He used to issue receipts for the trunk telephone calls in the proper printed receipt forms of the I. A. C. IN between the 16th February 1962 and the 30th August, 1962 both inclusive the appellant collected a sum of Rs. 184-90 consisting of nine items from various persons, but deposited with the I. A. C. only Rs. 44. 91 P. and himself retained the difference of Rs. 139. 99 P. The appellant issued correct receipts to the intending passengers but with a view to cover up the misappropriation falsified the office copies submitted to the I. A. C. as also the account books by entering therein the actual trunk call charges instead of the estimated amounts actually received from the intending passengers. On 31-8-1962 M. D. Singh of the Mercury Travel Agency, Jaipur complained to B. S. Gupta, the Station INcharge of the Office of the I. A. C. that the appellant had collected Rs. 23 40 P. for proposed trunk call charge from the Agency but made no call and no seat was J allotted to the passenger of Mercury Travel Agency even though one was available and that seat was given by B. B. Gupta to some one else. B. S. Gupta questioned the appellant and he made a confession of his having collected the amount and) his guilt of not making any call and at once resigned his job. The Area Manager of the I. A. C. conducted a preliminary inquiry and lodged a first information report. After investigation a charge sheet was submitted against the appellant. It was later amended. The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge and led defence evidence but was eventually convicted and sentenced as indicated above. He has now come up in appeal.

(3.) THE learned Additional Government Advocate supported the conclusions of the learned Special Judge,