Judgement

VENKATARAMA AYYAR J.: The appellant was a Sub-Divisional Officer in the Public works Department, Pepsu, and was, at the material dates, in charge of certain works at a place called Karhali. It was part of his duties to disburse the wages to the workmen employed in the works, and the procedure usually followed was that he drew the amount required from the treasury, and paid the same to the employees against their signatures or thumb-impression in the monthly acquittance roll.

In the roll for April 1951, one Parma was mentioned as a khalasi (menial servant),and a sum of Rs. 51 shown as paid to him for his wages, the payment being vouched by thumb-impression. The case of the prosecution was that there was, in fact, no person of the name of Prama, that the thumb-impression found in the acquittance roll was that of the appellant himself, that he had included a fictitious name in the acquittance roll, with intent to himself draw the amount, and that by this expedient he had received Rs. 51 and misappropriated the same.

2. The First-Class Magistrate of Patials, before whom the appellant was put up for trial, framed charges against him under S. 465, I. P. C. for forging the thumb-im