JUDGMENT :

N.V. ANJARIA, J.

Leave granted.

2. The appellant herein, who was serving as a driver in the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation¹[Hereinafter, “KSRTC”.] bus, came to be tried and convicted by the Court of learned 1st Addl. Civil Judge & JMFC, Athani at Athani²[Hereinafter, “trial court”.] by judgment and order dated 26.12.2015 passed in C.C. No.933 of 2011 for the offences under Sections 279 and 304A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860³[Hereinafter, “IPC”.] and under Section 134 read with Section 187 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988⁴[Hereinafter, “MV Act”.]. The appellant came to be sentenced to undergo simple imprisonment for four months for the offence punishable under Section 279, IPC and to undergo simple imprisonment for six months for the offence punishable under Section 304A, IPC.

2.1 The Court of VII Addl. Dist. & Sessions Judge, Belagavi, sitting at Chikodi⁵[Hereinafter, “Appellate Court”.] dismissed Criminal Appeal No.12 of 2016 preferred by the appellant against the judgment of the trial court by maintaining the conviction and sentence recorded by the trial court.

2.2 The aggrieved appellant approached the High Court of Karnataka, Dharwad Bench⁶[Hereinafter, “High