Judgment

BHAGWATI, J. : This was appeal by special leave from the decision of the High Court of Judicature at Nagpur confirming the conviction and sentence passed upon the appellant by the Court of the Magistrate First Class, Akola.

2. The appellant was charged :

(i) Under S. 7, Essential Supplies (Temporary Powers) Act 24 of 1946, read with Cl. 2(1) (a), Central Provinces and Berar Food-grains Export Restriction Order 1943 for exporting 1405 bags of uncleaned tur dal on 26-12-1946 from Yeotmal to Kalyan without premit in that he had no permit to export uncleaned tur dal and was not the holder of permit No. 10315 which moreover was exhausted before that day;

(ii) Under S. 420, Penal Code for cheating the Railway authorities and thus obtaining seven wagons to load 1405 bags to Kalyan; and

(iii) Under S. 471/465, Penal Code for fraudulently using as genuine permit No. 10315 knowing or having reason to believe at the time of using it to be a forged document in certain matters. The appellant s father. Pannalal Gulraj Chokhani & the broker Krishnarao Shankarrao were also charged with abetment of the first offence. The Magistrate convicted the appellant of all these offences and sentenced him to various terms of imprisonment and fine. The appellant s father and the broker were also convicted of the offence with which they were charged and sentenced to imprisonment and fine. The 1405 bags which were the subject-matter of the charge were ordered to be forfeited.

3. The appellant and the other accused took an appeal to the High Court of Judiature at Nagpur. The High Court quashed the conviction of the appellant in regard to the second and the third offences but confirmed his conviction in respect of the first offence and maintained the sentence of imprisonment and fine as also forfeiture of the property. The conviction of the appellant s father and the broker was quashed. The High Court rejected the application filed by the appellant for leave to appeal to this Court. The appellant however obtained from this Court special leave to appeal which was granted on 25-9-1950.

4. It is common ground that on 24-11-1944 the appellant s father had obtained in his name a permit No. 10315 for the export of 500 tons of chuni. He exported 130 tons under the permit within the extended date, the 30th April 1945 but no further extension was asked for nor was the permit returned by him to the Deputy Commissioner. It appears that in October 1946 the appellant applied to the Deputy Commissioner and certain alterations were made in the permit including the following :

(a) The name of the appellant was substituted as consignor in place of that his father.

(b) The term was extended upon 31-12-1946;

(c) The word bharda was added after the word Chuni in the description of the commodity allowed to be exported;

(d) The destination was changed from Wadi bunder to Kalyan;

(e) The words "to Kalyan for 500 tons" were added.

On the basis of this permit the appellant obtained seven wagons from the Railway authorities and on 25-12-1946 he despatched from Yeotmal to Kalyan 1405 bags of a commodity which has been variously described as chuni . Chuni bharda and bharda . During transit at Murtazapur Railway station, when the bags were being transhipped from the metre gauge to the broad gauge wagons, a small quantity of grain fell down from some of the bags. The Railway staff suspected that "tur dal" was being exported and reported the matter to the police. The police detained the wagons, took specimens of the stuff contained in the bags and after investigation challenged the appellant, his father Pannalal Gulraj Chokani and the broker Krishna Rao Shankarrao, charging them with the several offences mentioned above.

5. Under Section 15, Essential Supplies (Temporary Powers) Act 1946, where any person is prosecuted for contravening any order made under S. 3 which prohibits him from doing an act without a permit, the burden of proving that he has such a permit shall be on him. Claus