JUDGMENT :

Shiva Kirti Singh, J.

1. The question of law deserving adjudication in these appeals arises out of Section 85(a)(i)(b) of the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation Act (for brevity, ‘the Act’). The aforesaid statutory provision prescribes punishment for a particular offence as imprisonment which shall not be less than six months and the convict shall also be liable to fine of five thousand rupees. The proviso however empowers the court that it may, “for any adequate and special reasons to be recorded in the judgment, impose a sentence of imprisonment for a lesser term;”. The question to be answered is whether the court has been given judicial discretion only to reduce the sentence of imprisonment for any term lesser than six months or whether it also has discretion to levy no fine or a fine of less than five thousand rupees.

2. The facts of the case lie in a very narrow compass. The case arises out of criminal proceedings initiated by the appellant Employees State Insurance Corporation under Section 85 of the Act for conviction and punishment of the respondents for failure to pay contributions required by the Act. Both the respondents faced trial before the Special Court f