Judgment

JASWANT SINGH, J. :- During the course of on spot check carried out by him on December 29, 1964 of B. P. sheets lying in appellant No. 1s factory at Sonepat, the Development Officer (LME-1) of the Directorate General of Technical Development, New Delhi, discovered from an examination of the said appellants account books that it had, during the period intervening between January 1, 1964 and January 12, 1965, acquired black plain iron sheets of prime quality weighing 60.03 metric tons from various parties at a rate higher than the maximum statutory price fixed for such sheets by the Iron and Steel Controller (hereinafter referred to as the Controller) in exercise of the powers vested in him under clause 15(1) of the Iron and Steel (Control) Order, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as the Control Order). On the basis of this discovery, the appellants were prosecuted in the Court of the Special Magistrate, Ambala Cantt, for an offence under section 120-B of the Indian penal Code read with section 7 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 (Act No. 10 of 1955) (hereinafter referred to as the Act) as also for an offence under Section 7 of the Act read with clause 15(3) of the Control O