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2009 Supreme(AP) 776
HIGH COURT OF ANDHRA PRADESH
B. CHANDRA KUMAR, J.
UNION ROAD WAYS LTD
VS.
P. S. KONIJERLA, KHAMMAM DISTRICT
Criminal Revision Case No. 1846 of 2009
Decided On : NOCEMBER 5, 2009
Valluri Mohan Srinivas,
Headnote:
Constitution of India - Interim custody of the property – Investigation - Title as a carrier had title to the goods - Robbery and dacoity - Delivered to the consignee - Revision has been filed challenging order in Crime of Police Station passed by III Additional Judicial magistrate of First Class whereby and where under learned magistrate allowed petition filed by petitioner for return of lorry bearing along with load subject to condition that interim custody of property shall be given to petitioner on his executing a bond for a sum of with one surety and that he shall give an undertaking not to dispose of or alienate said property and shall produce same as and when required by Court and shall maintain case property in good condition and shall not change its design - case of petitioner is that its driver - by name lodged a report to police on and a case in Crime No. was registered by Police Station - Petition is owner of lorry bearing No. On at about while its driver was carrying iron construction material - Projects Ltd – Held Criminal Revision is accordingly disposed - In this case material loaded in lorry has to be delivered to consignee and documents filed by petitioner show that petitioner is holder of title for the present. The entire material loaded in the lorry if detained, if not delivered destination petitioner may be put to irreparable loss - Therefore in circumstances impugned order is modified as follows except pipes that have been seized at instance of accused remaining material and lorry shall be given to petitioner on condition of his executing a personal bond for a sum of and on further condition of giving a Bank guarantee for a like sum to satisfaction of learned iii Additional Judicial Magistrate of First class - As far as lorry is concerned petitioner shall not change shape or colour of lorry or alienate same and he shall produce it as and when required - Petitioner shall also deposit the RC Book with learned Magistrate pending further orders or till disposal of case - As far as material is concerned except pipes seized petitioner is permitted to deliver remaining material to its destination - Pipes that have been seized from possession of petitioner/accused shall be preserved as cases property - Criminal Revision Case is accordingly disposed.
( 2 ) THE case of the petitioner is that its driver, by name, Hair Shankar Singh, lodged a report to the police on 7-10-2009 and a case in Crime No. 124 of 2009 was registered by the Police, Konijerla Police Station, khammam District.
( 3 ) THE brief facts of the prosecution case are as follows: the petition is the owner of the lorry bearing No. OR 07 L 5066. On 5-10-2009 at about 4. 40 p. m. while its driver, Hair Shankar singh, was carrying iron construction material of M/s. Hindu Projects Ltd. , hyderabad to Rurkela in Orissa, and on 6-10-2009 at about 11. 00 a. m. when he stopped the said vehicle sand went to have tea, the cleaner of the lorry, by name, mr. Venkat Rao, had stolen away the truck along with the material. The driver of the lorry lodged a complaint to the Police, konijerla Police Station, Khammam District. Basing on the same the police registered a case in Crime No. 124 of 2009. During the course of investigation, the police arrested the accused Y. Venkateswara Rao @ Venkat rao and seized the lorry and the material on 9-10-2009. The further case of the prosecution is that the accused made a confessional statement that he had kept 100 pipes in two bundles near bushes to sell the same as scrap and the police seized those pipes under a cover of panchanama.
( 4 ) THE further case of the petitioner is that the petitioner being owner of the lorry, a public carrier, had insurable interest in the material loaded in the said truck, which was indeed entrusted to them by M/s. Indu projects Ltd. , Mamidipalli village, Saroor nagar Mandal, R. R. District at Hyderabad for delivering the same to the consignee m/s. Indu Projects Ltd. , C/o. Tata Projects ltd. , Roorkela (RTPS), Orissa vide Orissa way bill numbers AH 4696645 Andhra pradesh way Bill No. 4621304 and delivery challan Nos. 2494, 2495 and 2496, for which the petitioner had raised its own consignment Note No. 0211148 dated 5-10-2009. The petitioner being the holder of title as a carrier had title to the goods and is entitled to claim the same as its true owner from the first respondent. It is also the case of the petitioner that the material is to be delivered within 3 to 5 days at the destination of the petitioner and if the material is not delivered, the petitioner would be put to serious loss. It is also his submission that the condition imposed to execute a bond for rs. 7,00,000/- and to produce the same as and when required is too exorbitant and in view of the said order, the petitioner cannot deliver the consignment to the consignee.
( 5 ) THE only point that arises for consideration is, whether the conditions imposed by the learned III Additional Judicial magistrate of First Class, Khammam, require modification in the circumstances of the case.
( 6 ) AS seen from the documents filed by the petitioner, there appears to be some force in the contention of the learned counsel for the petitioner that the material is to be delivered to the consignee. In the cases of theft, robbery and dacoity, identity of the property at the time of trial may assume importance. Whether a particular property has been seized from the possession of the accused or not is a fact that has to
