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CALCUTTA HIGH COURT
Joymalya Bagchi, Ajay Kumar Gupta, JJ
Turakka Nagaraju @ Turaka Nagaraju – Appellant
Versus
The State of West Bengal – Respondent
Joymalya Bagchi, J. :-
1. Appeal is directed against judgment and order dated 22.12.2015 passed by learned Additional District & Sessions Judge, 5th Court, Malda in Sessions Trial No.25 of 2015 arising out Sessions Case No. 137 of 2015 convicting the appellant for commission of offence punishable under Sections 489B/489C of the Indian Penal Code and sentencing him to suffer rigorous imprisonment for ten years and to pay a fine of Rs.10,000/-, in default, to suffer rigorous imprisonment for one year more for the offence punishable under Section 489B of the Indian Penal Code and to suffer rigorous imprisonment for seven years and to pay a fine of Rs.10,000/-, in default, to suffer rigorous imprisonment for one year more for the offence punishable under Section 489C of the Indian Penal Code;both the sentences to run concurrently.
2. Gist of the prosecution case is to the effect that on receipt of telephonic information that a deal in fake Indian currency notes (FICNs) would take place at Alinagar Fatepur area, a G.D. being Kaliachak Police Station G.D. Entry No.1371 was recorded. Pursuant thereto, police personnel under the leadership of ASI Ram Chandra Saha (PW5) went to work out the i
Possession of fake currency notes established guilt beyond reasonable doubt; intent to use them in the market suffices for conviction under IPC Sections 489B and 489C.
The main legal point established in the judgment is that the failure to reframe the charges and give the appellants an opportunity to respond to the charges of trafficking or transportation of counte....
The judgment clarifies that mere possession of counterfeit currency does not equate to being a mastermind, and the role of the accused must be considered in sentencing.
Mens rea is essential for conviction under Section 489C of the IPC; mere possession of counterfeit notes is insufficient without proof of knowledge or intent.
Point of Law : Possession mensrea - A perusal of the provisions, extracted above, shows that mensrea of offences under Sections 489- B and 489-C is, "knowing or having reason to believe currency note....
Possession of forged or counterfeit currency-notes or bank-notes - Conviction modified - Prosecution prove charges under S. 489C of IPC. As far as charges of S. 489B of IPC prosecution could neither ....
Possession of counterfeit currency established through circumstantial evidence, while ownership of the recovery site remains unproven; conviction upheld with modified sentence considering age and del....
The prosecution must prove beyond reasonable doubt that the accused had knowledge or reason to believe that currency notes were counterfeit to sustain a conviction under IPC Sections 489B and 489C.
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