The main legal point established in the judgment is the interpretation of the provisions of the Indian Telegraph Act, the Code of Criminal Procedure, and the determination of whether the District Magistrate was functioning as an inferior Criminal Court. The judgment clarified the scope of revisional power of the Sessions Judge and the term 'criminal court' in the context of the case.

1. 1s the District Magistrate exercising powers under S.16(1) of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 an 'inferior Criminal Court' and is the order of such District Magistrate revisable by the Sessions Judge under S.397 of the Code of Criminal Procedure? This the issue which calls for determination in these petitions. A learned single judge before whom the matter came up referred the matter to the Division Bench in view of the importance of the question and on a reference by the Division Bench the matter is now before the Full Bench.

2. The petitioners in these petitions filed under S.482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure seek to set aside the order passed by the Sessions Judge, Tellicherry in two Criminal Revision Petitions and seek directions from this Court to the Sessions Judge to entertain the petitions on his file and to dispose them on merits.

3. There was a proposal by the Kerala State Electricity Board to construct and lay a 110 K.V. double circuit Transmission line to a private company, tapping the existing Cannanore-Kasaragode 110 K. V. line at Kattampally. The proposal envisaged the said line crossing over the property of the petitioners in the two cases. Both the petitioners filed petitions before the Assistant Executive Engineer of the Board who was concerned with the said work requesting him to avoid the properties of the petitioners in drawing the line. It was suggested that there were alternate routes through which the line could be taken. In view of such objection by the. two petitioners the Assistant Executive Engineer concerned moved the District Magistrate, Cannanore under S.16 (1) of the Indian Telegraph Act for permitting him to exercise powers under S.10 of the Act. The petitioners objected to this. The District Magistrate passed an order on 19-5-1979 giving permission to the first respondent in these two petitions, the Assistant Executive Engineer, to exercise the powers mentioned in S.10 of the Indian Telegraph Act in respect of the lands of the petitioners.

4. Against the orders of the District Magistrate the petitioners preferred Criminal Revision Petitions to the Sessions Judge, Tellicherry. The Criminal Revision Petitions were not numbered. They were heard on the objection by the first respondent that no Revision lay to the Sessions Judge against an order of the District Magistrate passed under S.16 (1) of the Indian Telegraph Act. The Sessions Judge accepting the said objection held that in both the cases the Revision Petitions were not maintainable and rejected them. This Court has been approached to invoke the exercise of inherent powers to compel the Sessions Judge to re-entertain the petitions on his file, for, according to the petitioners the Revisions were maintainable before the Sessions Judge and by refusing to entertain them prejudice has been caused to the petitioners.

5. S.51 of the Indian Electricity Act, 1910 enables the State Government to confer upon any public officer, licensee or any other person engaged in the business of supplying energy to the public under the Indian Electricity Act, any of the powers which the Telegraph authority possesses under the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885 with respect to the placing of telegraphic lines and posts. That such power has been conferred upon the first respondent in these petitions and in proposing to draw the line and placing the posts he was exercising such power is not in controversy. Though the power exercised by him is as such authority under S.51 of the Indian Electricity Act read with the provisions of the Indian Telegraph Act, for the sake of convenience we are referring in this judgment to his power as that under the Indian Telegraph Act.

6. S.10 of the Indian, Telegraph Act, 1885 empowers the Telegraph authority to place and maintain a telegraph line under, over, along or across and posts in or upon any immovable property. It may not be necessary to refer to the proviso in that Section at the moment. S.16 of the said Act deals with e