1991 Supreme(Guj) 311
Gujarat High Court
Judgename :J.U.Mehta
STATE OF GUJARAT - Appellant
Versus
MOTIBHAI JETHABHAI MAKWANA - Respondent
CRIMINAL APPEAL 85 of 1983
Decided On : 10/16/1991
Headnote:
Code of Criminal Procedure – Section 377 – Penal Code – Sections 420, 468, 465, 511 – Probation of offenders Act – Section 3 – Acquittal – Challenged – Being aggrieved by the judgment and order passed by the Court of the learned Judicial Magistrate, F. C. , in Criminal Case, the State has approached this Court by way of Criminal appeal for enhancement of sentence under Sec. 377 Cri. Pro. Code – State has also filed Criminal Appeal from the order of acquittal passed for the offences punishable under Secs. 420 and 468 I. P. C – Original complainant has also filed Criminal Revision Application against the order of acquittal passed for the aforesaid offences and also against the order of probation under the provisions of the Probation of offenders Act – Held, Court is taking this view because of the fact that the school authorities have not suffered any loss by reason of the accused having attempted to cheat the school authorities – Incident occurred in the year 1981 and after the conclusion of the trial before the Magistrate, this appeal was filed by the State – Appeal was admitted in the year 1983 – Accused must have suffered mental agony and also must have been put to lot of expenses in defending himself before two Courts Under such circumstances, the accused deserves to be given admonition under Sec. 3 of the Probation of Offenders Act, for the offence punishable under Sec. 417 read with Sec. 511 I. P. C – Criminal Appeal Dismissed
( 1 ) BEING aggrieved by the judgment and order dated 30-10-1982 passed by the Court of the learned Judicial Magistrate, F. C. , Bajana in Criminal Case No. 610 of 1981, the State has approached this Court by way of Criminal appeal No. 84 of 1983 for enhancement of sentence under Sec. 377 Cri. Pro. Code. The State has also filed Criminal Appeal No. 85 of 1983 from the order of acquittal passed for the offences punishable under Secs. 420 and 468 I. P. C. The original complainant has also filed Criminal Revision Application No. 42 of 1983 against the order of acquittal passed for the aforesaid offences and also against the order of probation under the provisions of the Probation of offenders Act.
( 2 ) THE facts of the case are that the accused Motibhai Jethabhai makwana was working as a Teacher in a High School run in the name of Patwari Maniben Balubhai Vidyavihar at Bajana. According to the prosecution, the accused submitted a bill for a sum of Rs. 2,579. 00 before the school authorities for Leave Travel Benefit on the ground that the accused with his family travelled on 6-5-1981 from Bajana to Varanasi and on 17- 5-1981 from Varanasi to Bajana by railway and travelled in First Class. According to the prosecution, the complaint was filed by the complainant in the Court of Judicial Magistrate F. C. , Bajana for offences under Sees. 420, 468, 465 and 511 I. P. C. The said complaint was filed on 16-10-1981. The court passed an order under Sec. 156 (3) Gri. Pro. Code for making an inquiry by the Police. The P. S. I. , Bajana submitted the charge-sheet against the present accused and on submission of the said charge-sheet, the Court took cognizance and tried the case against the accused for the offences punishable under Sees, 420, 468, 465 read with Sec. 511 I. P. C. The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge.
( 3 ) MR. K. M. Mehta, learned Addl. P. P. for the State submitted at the outset that the appeal of the State filed under Sec. 377 Cri. Pro. Code may be treated as an appeal under Sec. 11 of the Probation of Offenders Act. Mr. Amit Shah has also fairly stated that he has no objection if the appeal filed by the State under Sec. 377 Cri. Pro. Code is treated as an appeal under sec. 11 of the Probation of Offenders Act. Therefore, Cri. Appeal No. 84 of 1983 filed by the State is ordered to be treated as an appeal under Sec. 11 of the Probation of Offenders Act. 13. Therefore, now we have to look as to what offence is committed by the accused. Before coming to the conclusion whether the trial Court committed an error in giving benefit of the provisions of the Probation of offenders Act to the accused, it will have to be seen whether the conviction order passed by the trial Court was tenable on the facts found by the trial court, as envisaged by Sec. 465 I. P. C. Section 465 I. P. C. is a punishing section for the offence of forgery. Therefore, we will have to turn to the definition of forgery given in Sec. 463 I. P. C. Section 463 I. P. C. reads as under :"463. Whoever makes any false document or part of a document with intent to cause damage or injury, to the public or to any person, or to support any claim or title, or to cause any person to part with property, or to enter into any express or implied contract, or with intent to commit fraud or that fraud may be committed, commits forgery. "section 463 I. P. C. starts with the words "whoever makes any false document or part of a document". Therefore, we will have to turn to Sec. 464 I. P. C. which defines "making a false document". Section 464 I. P. C. reads as under:"464. A person is said to make a false document -First - Who dishonestly or fraudulently makes, signs, seals or executes a document or part of a document, or makes any mark denoting the execution of a document, with the intention of causing it to be believed that such document or part of a document was made, signed, sealed or executed by or by the authority of a person by whom or by whose authority he k