Section 148 of the N.I. Act is retrospective in nature and applies to appeals filed after its introduction on 16.8.2018. The appellate court has the power to order the payment of compensation pending appeal as a condition for suspension of sentence.

JUDGMENT

Sanjeev Prakash Sharma, J. - Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that direction issued by the appellate Court for depositing 20% of the amount as directed by the trial Court is not in accordance with the law as the offence alleged is relating to the period prior to coming into force of the amendment made in Section 143-A of the N.I. Act, 1881.

2. Learned counsel relies on the judgment delivered in the case of Surendra Singh Deswal @ Col. S.S. Deswal & Ors. Versus Virender Gandhi & Anr. in Criminal Appeal No. 1936-1963 of 2019 dated 8.1.2020 to submit that Section 143-A of the N.I. Act is prospective in nature and would be confined to the cases where offence has been committed after introduction of Section 143-A of the N.I. Act.

3. I have considered the submissions as above and find that the petitioner has already been convicted for offence under Section 138 of the N.I. Act vide judgment dated 15.11.2019. He has preferred an appeal before the appellate Court and the learned Sessions Judge No. 5, Jaipur Metro, vide its order dated 12.12.2019 has while invoking power under Section 148 of the N.I. Act has directed the petitioner to deposit 20% of the amount within 16 days failing which the sentence suspension shall stand vacated.

4. In Surender Singh Deswal @ Col. S.S. Deswal & Ors. Versus Virendra Gandhi (Criminal Appeal Nos. 917-944 of 2019) and having considered the provisions of Section 148 of the N.I. Act has held as under:

"15. The judgment of this Court which was delivered in the case of the present appellants i.e. Criminal Appeal Nos. 917-944 of 2019 (Surinder Singh Deswal @ Col. S.S. Deswal and others vs. Virender Gandhi) (in which one of us M.R. Shah, J was also a member) was also cited before the Bench deciding the case of G.J. Raja. This Court in its judgment dated 29.05.2019 has rejected the submission of the appellants that Section 148 of N.I. Act shall not be made applicable retrospectively. This Court held that considering the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the amendment in Section 148 of the N.I. Act, on purposive interpretation of Section 148 of the N.I. Act as amended, shall be applicable in respect of the appeals against the order of conviction and sentence for the offence under Section 138 of the N.I. Act, even in a case where the criminal complaints for the offence under Section 138 of the N.I. Act were filed prior to amendment Act No. 20/2018 i.e. prior to 01.09.2018.

16. The Bench deciding G.J. Raja's case has noticed the judgment of this Court in the appellants' case i.e. Surinder Singh Deswal's case and has opined that the decision of this Court in Surinder Singh Deswal's case was on Section 148 of the N.I. Act which is a stage after conviction of the accused and distinguishable from the stage in which the interim compensation was awarded under Section 143A of the N.I. Act. When the Bench deciding G.J. Raja's case(supra) itself has considered and distinguished the judgment of this Court in appellants' own case i.e. Surinder Singh Deswal's, reliance by the learned counsel for the appellants on the judgment of this Court in G.J. Raja's case is misplaced. It is useful to refer to paragraph 23 of the judgment in G.J. Raja's case which is to the following effect:

"23. We must, however, advert to a decision of this Court in Surinder Singh Deswal and Ors. v. Virender Gandhi, (2019) 8 SCALE 445 where Section 148 of the Act which was also introduced by the same Amendment Act 20 of 2018 from 01.09.2018 was held by this Court to be retrospective in operation. As against Section 143A of the Act which applies at the trial stage that is even before the pronouncement of guilt or order of conviction, Section 148 of the Act applies at the appellate stage where the Accused is already found guilty of the offence Under Section 138 of the Act. It may be stated that there is no provision in Section 148 of the Act which is similar to Sub-Section (5) of Section 143A of the Act. However, as a matter of fact, n