Mridula Mishra, J.

1. This Petition has been filed by the petitioner for quashing the entire criminal proceedings including the order dated 18.10.2002 by which the learned Magistrate has directed to issue summons to the petitioner to stand trial under Sections 500, 501/34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 .

2. The complaint case No. 1501(C) of 2002 was filed by Dr. Chandra Bhushan Verma, Opposite Party No. 2, against ten named accused persons including the petitioner. Amar Nath Singh is professor of P.G. Department in the Patna University and also General Secretary of Patna University Teachers Association. The news agency of Hindustan Times and its employees as well as some other persons have also been made accused. On the basis of a news item published on 24.7.2002 in daily Hindi news paper Hindustan the complaint petition was filed by the complainant. It is alleged in the complaint petition that the complainant was appointed on 19.11.1999 as lecturer in Vanijya Mahavidyalaya where he is rendering his services free of cost. The news item on 24.7.2002 was published under the heading "Lawyer teaching commerce students without teaching experience". This news item carried a news that by letter dated 24.9.2001 the Principal of Vanijya Mahavidyalaya has appointed a lawyer as teacher. This news item is a part of the complaint petition. It is further stated in the complaint petition, that the complainant is a practising lawyer and in news item he has been defamed as his qualification has been challenged although he is Ph. D. in commerce and is qualified enough to take classes in the commerce subjects. The complainant was examined on S.A. and he also examined two witnesses under Sec. 202 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The witnesses who have been examined in the enquiry u/s. 202 of he Code of Criminal Procedure have only stated that after reading the news paper they came to know about this imputation made against the complainant that he is not qualified. The complainant is teaching in the commerce college and such news has lowered down the prestige .of the complainant in the society.

3. The Judicial Magistrate, 1st Class, Patna, was issued summons to the petitioner to stand trial under Secs. 500 and 501/34 of the Indian Penal Code.

4. The offence of defamation punishable u/s. 500 of the Indian Penal Code has been defined in sec. 499 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 . u/s. 499 of the Indian Penal Code the ingredients for making out a case of defamation have been mentioned. sec. 499, Explanation 4 reads as follows :-

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"No imputation is said to harm a persons reputation, unless that imputation directly or indirectly, in the estimation of others lowers the moral or intellectual character of that person or lowers the character of that person in respect of his caste or of his calling, or lowers the credit of that person, or causes it to be believed that the body of that person is in a loathsome state, or in a state generally considered as disgraceful."

5. In the present case neither the complainant nor the witnesses examined by the complainant have stated that defamatory word was uttered by the petitioner in their presence. This is the case of the complainant and according to the statement of the witnesses, only from the news item they came to know that the petitioner who is the Secretary of the Patna University Teachers Association has stated that the complainant has been appointed as a teacher because the principal of the college is contesting a case in the civil Court which is being conducted by the complainant as an advocate. Only to please the complainant, he had been appointed as a teacher by the Principal.

6. The counsel appearing for the opposite parties has submitted that from the news item the prestige of the complainant has been lowered down in the society and the news item is an imputation on the qualification and credibility of the complainant. Offence u/s. 500 and 501/34 of the Indian Penal Code has been prima facie mad