The petitioner has been indicted for offence punishable under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act in CC No.427/2016 on the file of the Court of Judicial First Class Magistrate-I, Thodupuzha instituted on the basis of a complaint filed by the first respondent herein. The dishonoured cheque involved in this case is for Rs.5 lakhs. According to the petitioner (accused), the specific case of the defence is that the accused had not given the instant cheque to the first respondent complainant in the year 2013 as alleged in the complaint and that it is the further case of the petitioner (accused) that the said cheque leaf is above 18 years old and the signature in the cheque is also above 18 years old, and that this fact can be proved if the cheque is sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory for determining the age of the handwriting and the age of the signature in the said dishonoured cheque. If it is so scientifically established that the age of the cheque and the signature therein are 18 years old, then the specific case put up by the complainant that the cheque was executed and issued in the year 2013, would be crumbled down. Therefore, for this purpose the petitioner