EMPEROR Vs. MOHANLAL GOKULDAS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal from an order passed by the Presidency Magistrate, II Court, Mazagaon, Bombay, convicting the accused under Section 7 of Act XXIV of 1946 read with Clause 12(1) of the Cotton Cloth and Yarn Control Order, 1945, and sentenced him to rigorous imprisonment for one year and a fine of Rs. 2,00,000, in default rigorous imprisonment for six months.

(2.) The case against the accused was that he sold to one Mrs. Gobhai a piece of Tootal drill cloth at the rate of Rs. 5-14-0 whereas the control price was Rs. 3-7-4 and he failed to give a cash memo in respect of this sale. The prosecution case was sought to be established by the evidence of Mrs. Gobhai herself, a lady by the name of Miss Sidhwa who accompanied her and the panch witness. The learned Magistrate in a very careful judgment has considered the evidence of these witnesses, has taken into consideration the discrepancies and contradictions pointed out by the defence and has come to the conclusion that all these three witnesses are witnesses of truth and the prosecution case has been established.

(3.) The substantial defence that was put forward was that the cloth was not really sold to Mrs. Gobhai but was given on jangad. It is in evidence that when the search was going on the accused did not state that the cloth was given on jangad, nor did he produce any jangad book. It is only at a subsequent stage after the accused had made his statement at the Police Station to the officer in charge of the investigation that his mehta brought a jangad book duly written containing an entry with regard to this piece of cloth. In our opinion the learned Magistrate was entirely right in disbelieving this defence set up by the accused.