IMPORTANT POINTS
There is no bar on the accused filing application u/s 319, Cr.P.C. nor there is any time limit therefor.
Offences punishable under Sections 409, 420, 467, 468, 471 etc. cannot be regarded as having been committed by a public servant while ‘acting or purporting to act in discharge of official duty’. Hence Section 197, Cr.P.C. is not attracted in such cases.

JUDGMENT

C.K. Thakker, J. —

1. Leave granted.

2. The present appeal is filed by the appellant-accused against the order passed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Barnala on March 5, 1998 in Criminal Revision Nos. 11 and 12 of 1997 and confirmed by the High Court of Punjab & Haryana on November 26, 2006 in Criminal Revision Nos. 401 and 402 of 1998.

3. To appreciate the issues raised in the present appeal, few relevant facts may be stated.

4. On August 21, 1986, First Information Report (FIR) No. 87 was lodged against the appellant for commission of offences punishable under Sections 409, 420, 467, 468 and 471 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The allegation in the FIR was that the appellant was a Clerk in Government High School, Rurke Kalan. He had forged signature of Sher Singh-respondent No. 2 herein who was the Head Master-cum-Drawing and Disbursing Officer and embezzled substantial amount of more than Rs. one lakh between 1979 and 1986. As stated in the FIR, the said fact came to light when audit was carried out and report was submitted. Hence, the complaint.

5. According to the appellant, during the course of investigation, signatures of respondent No. 2 were also taken and were sent for examination but the report on the said examination was never filed by the prosecution in the proceedings. It was only in the course of recording of prosecution evidence that certain witnesses deposed against respondent No. 2 alleging that it was respondent No. 2 who had withdrawn the amount and signatures purported to have been forged by the appellant really tallied with the specimen signatures of respondent No. 2. In view of the said fact, the appellant on February 05, 1994 and on January 06, 1996, filed applications under Section 319 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Code’) in the Court of Judicial Magistrate praying therein to add respondent No. 2 as an accused and summon him being Head Master-cum-Drawing and Disbursing Officer who had prepared false and forged bills, misappropriated the amount and committed fraud on the Government.

6. The learned Magistrate, after considering the evidence on record, held that prima facie case had been made out against respondent No. 2 and that he should also be joined as accused. The learned Magistrate allowed the applications of the appellant and issued summons to respondent No. 2 by joining him as accused.

7. Though the order was passed on January 22, 1996, it was not challenged by respondent No. 2. The order, however, was challenged by the State by filing a Revision Petition in the Court of Additional Sessions Judge, Barnala. The learned Judge vide an order dated May 06, 1996, dismissed the petition filed by respondent No. 1-State.

8. After a gap of more than eight months from the order passed by the learned Magistrate summoning respondent No. 2, he filed an application on September 25, 1996 to review/recall summoning order dated January 22, 1996. He also contended in a separate petition that he could not be prosecuted in absence of sanction as required by Section 197 of the Code. The learned Magistrate by an order dated March 12, 1997 dismissed the application of respondent No. 2 holding it to be not maintainable in view of dismissal of revision of the State by the Additional Sessions Judge.

9. Being aggrieved by the order passed by the Judicial Magistrate, respondent No. 2 filed two Revision Petitions before the learned Additional Sessions Judge. The learned Judge allowed the revisions of respondent No. 2 and set aside the order dated January 22, 1996 passed by the Judicial Magistrate adding respondent No. 2 as an accused and summoning him. The said order was passed on March 5, 1998.

10. The appellant challenged both the orders by approaching the High Court by instituting two revision petitions. The High Court, however, dismissed both the revisions and confirmed the order passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge. The said order is challenged in the pre