SUPERINTENDENT AND REMEMBRANCER OF LEGAL AFFAIRS Vs. MURRAY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal on behalf of the Local Government against an order of the Deputy Magistrate of Howrah dated 28 October 1927, by which he acquitted the accused under Section 245, Criminal P.C., of the offences alleged to have been committed by him under Section 41(a) read with Section 26 and Section 41(h) read with Section 35, Factories Act (Act 12 of 1911, as amended-by Act 5 of 1923).

(2.) What happened in this case was as follows : On 28 June 1927, the Inspector of Factories, Bengal, inspected the Howrah Jute Mills of which the accused Murray was the Manager and found three persons, named, Jokadia, Varalee and Sukfaria, employed and working in the Drawing Department without having any specified hours fixed for their employment in contravention of Section 26, Factories Act, and further found that though the said three persons had commenced to work at 9-30 a.m. their names had not been entered in the prescribed register at 10-20 in contravention of Section 35 of the Act and Rule 76 thereunder.

(3.) The accused Murray appeared before the Magistrate on 16 August 1927, and tiled two petitions of complaint under Section 42 of the Act in respect of the aforesaid offences against three other persons named Whitton, Charan Das Chatterjee and Sali Dutt, alleging inter alia that he had always used due diligence to enforce the provisions of the Act, that the offence if committed at all, was committed without his knowledge and consent and that the persons mentioned in his petition of complaint who were under him and whose duty it was to look to the proper and lawful working of their department were directly responsible for any wrongful acts of commission or omission.