The court modified the appellate order, reducing the deposit requirement from 20% to 10% of the cheque amount, emphasizing adherence to Supreme Court precedents.

ORDER :

(FARJAND ALI, J.)

1. By way of filing the instant criminal misc. petition, a challenge has been made to the order dated 19.12.2024 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, No.3, Udaipur (hereinafter to be referred as ‘the appellate court’) in Criminal Appeal No.634/2024, whereby the application under Section 430 of BNSS filed by the petitioner was allowed with the condition to deposit 20% of fine amount within 1 month.

2. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the material as made available to this Court as well as the order under assail.

3. Bereft of elaborate details, briefly stated facts of the case are that the petitioner was tried and convicted for the offence under Section 138 of the N.I. Act vide judgment dated 29.11.2024 passed by the learned Special Judicial Magistrate, N.I. Act Cases No.06, Udaipur (hereinafter to be referred as ‘the trial court’). Aggrieved of the judgment of conviction, he preferred an appeal before the learned appellate court along with an application under Section 430 of BNSS for suspension of sentence awarded by the learned trial court. Vide the order under assail dated 19.12.2024, the learned appellate court allowed the application under Section 430 of the BNSS with the condition of depositing 20% of the fine amount within 1 month as directed by the learned trial court.

4. The grief of the petitioner would be that in view of the mandate of law and the judgment passed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Jamboo Bhandari Vs. M.P. State Industrial Development Corporation Ltd. reported (2023) 10 SCC 446, there is no need to direct the appellant to deposit 20% of the cheque amount as well as imposition of a condition for deposition of 20% of the cheque amount is not imperative and mandatory.

5. In view of the limited prayer, the legal provisions and the law enunciated in this regard by the Hon'ble Supreme Court, I deem it appropriate to make a slight modification in the order dated 19.12.2024.

6. Accordingly, the instant criminal misc. petition is allowed in part and the order dated 19.12.2024 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, No.3, Udaipur in Criminal Appeal No.634/2024, is modified in the manner that now the petitioner would deposit 10% of the cheque amount instead of 20% of the cheque amount. He is given a further concession to deposit the same till 20.03.2025. The impugned order is modified to this extent.

7. The stay petition also stands disposed of.