1. The Secretary of the Malabar Market Committee, Kozhikode, is the appellant. The respondent is a licensee under the Malabar Market Committee dealing in arecanuts and having business within five miles of the regulated market at Vattamkulam. Under by-law 25 (6) framed under the Madras Commercial Crops Markets Act XX of 1933, every such licensee is bound to submit the returns of his business transactions in the prescribed form to the Secretary of the Market Committee as and when required by him. On 1-1-1960 the complainant sent a registered notice to the respondent calling upon him to furnish returns of his transactions for the year 1959 in compliance with bye-law 25 (6). Since the respondent did not furnish the returns a further notice was sent to him intimating that a prosecution will be launched in case he failed to submit the returns within ten days. As the respondent failed to furnish the returns even then, the complainant filed C.C. No. 14 of 1960 on the file of the Munsiff-Magistrate of Ponnani under S.19 (2) of the Madras Commercial Crops Markets Act read with byelaw 25 (6) and 25 (18) of the bye-laws framed under the said Act. The respondent had no case that he