ORDER :

The present petitioner is the accused in C.C.No.32455/2014, in the Court of the XII Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, at Bengaluru (hereinafter for brevity referred to as “the Trial Court”), who by the impugned judgment of conviction and order on sentence dated 08-09-2016 passed by the Trial Court was convicted for the offence punishable under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, and was sentenced accordingly.

Challenging the same, the accused preferred a Criminal Appeal in the Court of the 58th Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge, Bengaluru (hereinafter for brevity referred to as “the Sessions Judge’s Court) in Criminal Appeal No.249/2017, however, with a delay of 137 days in preferring the criminal appeal. The accused as an appellant had also filed an application under Section 5 of the Limitation Act, 1963 (hereinafter for brevity referred to as “the Act”), seeking condonation of delay of 137 days in preferring the criminal appeal.

2. The Sessions Judge’s Court, by its impugned order dated 04-04-2017 made on I.A.No.1 filed under Section 5 of the Act, dismissed the said I.A., consequently dismissed the appeal also. Challenging the same, the accuse