GANESHI LAL Vs. NAND KISHORE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this case and Kishore lodged a complaint against Ganeshi Lal. The substance of the complaint is as follows :-- The head office of the complainant is at Cawnpore. A branch of the firm was opened at Gauriganj, district Sultanpur, in Sambat 1964 The accused was appointed a gumashta and his share was fixed at four annas in the rupee. He worked till Sam-bat 1966 and was asked to come to Cawnpore. The accused seemed to have been guilty of criminal breach of trust. The complainant directed him to close the shop at Gauriganj and not to reopen it until the complainant had gone there and had checked the account. The complainant went to his home at Bhiwani in the Hissar district. When he returned in 1907, it came to his knowledge that the accused had opened the shop and misappropriated the money realized by him which he had to send to Cawnpore. A sum of about Rs. 1,583-14-6 has been misappropriated by him. When the complainant was examined, he distinctly stated that the accused misappropriated the money belonging to the branch of the firm at Gauriganj. The Magistrate to whom the complaint was made came to the conclusion that he had no jurisdiction inasmuch as the offence appeared to have been committed in Gauriganj. In revision, the learned Judge was of opinion that the court at Cawnpore had jurisdiction. In his order he says : The facts alleged constitute an even stronger case for jurisdiction in the Cawnpore courts than did the facts in a previous case, I. L. R, 19 All., 111, or I. L. R, 26 Calc., 746. Having regard to Section 179 and to the above rulings in explanation thereof, I find that the Magistrate had jurisdiction to proceed with the case.

(2.) An application in revision is made to this Court, and it is urged on behalf of the applicant that the order of the Joint Magistrate is right. Section 179 of the Code of Criminal Procedure runs as follows : When a person is accused of the commission of any offence by reason of anything which has been done and of any consequence which has ensued, such offence may be inquired into or tried by a court within the local limits of whose jurisdiction any such thing has been done or any such consequence has ensued.

(3.) The word consequence in this section, in my opinion, means a consequence which forms a part and parcel of the offence. It does not mean a consequence which is not such a direct result of the act of the offender as to form no part of the offence. In Bubu Lal v. Ghansham Das (1) it is remarked : It is contended that Section 179, by reason of the words contained in it and of any consequence which has ensued gives the Magistrate at Aligarh in this case jurisdiction. But the only reasonable interpretation which can be put upon these words is that they are (1) (1908) 5 A. L. J., 333 intended to embrace only such consequences as modify or complete the acts alleged to be an offence.