JUDGMENT

S.B. Sinha, J.—

1. Leave granted.

2. These appeals arising out of a common judgment and order dated 17.07.2007 passed by the High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Hyderabad were taken up for hearing together and are being disposed of by this common judgment.

3. Accused No. 4 - S.V.L. Murthy was the Branch Manager of Begum Bazar Branch of State Bank of India (for short, “SBI”). Accused No. 1 - Venugopal Loya was proprietor of some business concerns, namely, M/s Shobhachand Shivijiram (“SS”), M/s Sreeji Industries (“SI”) and M/s Harikrishan Roopchand (“HR”). Whereas SS and HR used to deal in wholesale trade in grains and spices, SI was a plastic manufacturing concern. Accused No. 2 - Gopaldas Dharak was a partner of M/s Gayatri Traders (“GT”). He used to operate current account in the same Branch. Accused No. 3 - Radheshyam Dharak, partner of GT, an Accountant working in the firms of Accused No.1. Accused No. 5 - P. Jayakumar was the Accountant in the Begam Bazar Branch of the State Bank of India. Accused No. 6 - Y. Narahari Murthy was the Charge Branch Manager.

4. SS was established in the year 1860. It opened current account with Begum Bazar Branch of the State Bank of India on