1. A complaint was filed by the Income Tax Officer (Special Circle, Ernakulam) against M/s Metalex Agencies and its partners and also some of its officers. The said Agency is a firm having eleven partners. The complaint was taken on the file of the Judicial Magistrate of the 1st Class, Ernakulam and was later transferred to the Court of the Addl. Chief Judicial Magistrate (Economic Offences), Ernakulam. There are seventeen accused of which the firm is the first accused. Offences alleged against the accused are those under S.277 and S.278 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (for short 'the Act') besides offences under S.120B,193, 196, 420 and 109 of the IPC Almost a decade after the institution of the complaint, one of the accused (the 13th accused) filed a petition in the trial court praying for discharge of the accused on various grounds. The learned Magistrate dismissed the petition by order dated 12-3-1985, against which Crl. R. P. 201/85 has been filed. Not being satisfied with the said revision petition, the 13th accused filed Crl. M. C. 717/85 under S.482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure for quashing the complaint and all subsequent proceedings thereunder.

2. The allegati