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IN THE HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR
Smt. Justice Rajani Dubey, J
C.C.N. Entertainment (India Pvt. Ltd.) Through: Director, Abhishek Agrawal – Appellant
Versus
Shrikant Verma S/o K.K Verma – Respondent
Judgment :
(Rajani Dubey, J.)
1. This present acquittal appeal is preferred under Section 378 (4) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, against the judgment dated 03.10.2016 passed by learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, District- Bilaspur (C.G.) in Complaint Case No. 13856/2014, whereby the respondent /accused was acquitted of the charge under Section 138 of Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.
2. Brief facts of the case as adumbrated is that appellant/complainant company and the respondent/accused had entered into an agreement, on 14.08.2008, wherein the respondent/accused had obtained signal for free during the period from month of September 2008 to month of November 2008 and thereafter made payment of the cost of the signal obtained. That, the respondent/accused had obtained signal from appellant/complainant company in the month of June 2009 and had issued question cheque no. 327252 dated 15.06.2009 to the tune of Rs. 49,158/- of Punjab National Bank Branch Sadar Bazar Bilaspur for the cost of signal the respondent had obtained. The appellant/complainant company presented the said cheque before Axis Bank branch Bilaspur for withdrawal , where the appellant/complainant company was ap
Defects in authority to file a complaint under the Negotiable Instruments Act are curable, and acquittal on such technical grounds is erroneous.
Power of attorney holders can file cheque dishonour complaints if they possess personal knowledge of the transaction; absence of such knowledge may invalidate the complaint.
A complainant must demonstrate ownership as the payee or holder in due course to maintain a complaint under Section 138 of the NI Act; failure to establish this results in dismissal.
The court emphasized that under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, there is a presumption that cheques are issued for discharging legal liabilities, which the accused must rebut.
A complaint under the Negotiable Instruments Act must be filed in the name of the corporate entity, and valid statutory notice of dishonour is a prerequisite for prosecution.
The burden of proof lies on the complainant to establish the case beyond reasonable doubt in a complaint under Section 138 of the NI Act.
The appellate court must respect trial court findings of acquittal unless substantial errors are demonstrated, maintaining the presumption of innocence.
A cheque issued by a Firm does not implicate the proprietor unless the Firm is named in the complaint, requiring clear averments regarding sole proprietorship for liability under Section 138.
A cheque issued by a Firm does not implicate the proprietor unless the Firm is named as an accused; absence of sole proprietorship averment in the complaint is fatal.
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