The prosecution must establish mens rea beyond reasonable doubt to prove a case under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code.

SURINDER SINGH, J. (Oral) : Heard and gone through the record.

2.The State felt aggrieved by the judgment of acquittal passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge (Fast track Court), Hamirpur, whereby the conviction and sentence of the respondent, hereinafter referred to as ‘the accused’, for the offence under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code, was set aside.

3.Precisely, the case of the prosecution, as stated by the prosecution witnesses, is that complainant PW1 Kuldeep Kumar was running a vegetable shop, whereas the accused was running a grocery shop at Mehre Bazar, Tehsil Barsar, District Hamirpur. They were in visiting terms in the shops of each other. One day, the accused represented to the complainant that a labourer came in his contact and told him that during the digging operation he found 2.5 Kgs. gold biscuits and if the accused intended to purchase it, he would sell it on cheater rate. On this, the accused contacted the complainant. Both of them intended to purchase the gold biscuits from the said labourer.

4.On 31.5.2001, the complainant withdrew an amount of ‘.1,10,000/- and took an amount of ‘.40,000/- from PW5 Amar Nath. The accused also arranged for the money and both of them hired a vehicle for which both of them paid in equal shares and went towards Talmehra in District Una. When they crossed Mubarakpur at a distance of two kilometers, and reached Bhanjal near Atta Chaki, the vehicle was stopped. The accused got down and directed the complainant to wait for about ten minutes. After sometime the accused returned with two bags in his hands, one was kept by him and another was given to the complainant. Both of them had made the payment of the alleged gold. The complainant had paid through accused. Thereafter both of them returned to their respective places. The complainant kept the said bag of gold biscuits at his residence and went to Kullu in connection with his business, then returned after about 20 days. Thereafter he took out one biscuit as a sample to show it to the goldsmith in village Badni, who told that it was not gold but of a gold plated-brass. Thereafter he took another biscuit to the goldsmith at Mehre in the Bazar and had shown to another goldsmith. He also confirmed the fact that the said biscuit was not of gold, whereas about two months before the said incident, the accused is said to have got tested the sample which was stated to be of pure gold.

5.The complainant, on coming to know that he was cheated, contacted the accused. In turn, he told him that he should hire a vehicle and visit Hoshiarpur. In the meantime, he was also coming to meet the said person and they would get the amount back from the person from whom they had purchased the above gold biscuits, but the accused did not accompany him. Thereafter he contacted the shopkeepers of the Bazaar and complained about the above incident to them. They also insisted upon the accused to refund his amount, but in vain, at last he lodged the FIR Ext.PW1/A in the Police Station and also produced the gold biscuits weighing 1.480 Kgs., which were taken into possession by the police vide memo Ext.PW1/B.

6.The accused was arrested. During interrogation he told the police that he was also cheated and produced 1 Kg. 95 grams of alleged gold which was purchased by him. The police took it into possession vide memo Ext.PW2/A. Both the alleged gold, one produced by complainant and another by the accused, were sealed and sent for the examination to the Central Forensic Science Laboratory, Chandigarh. On its examination vide Ext.PW6/E, it was opined that the stuff sent to them was not of gold, but of brass.

7.After completing the investigation, the challan was presented in the Court for the trial of the accused. He was accordingly, charge-sheeted for the offence under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code. At the end of trial, the accused was convicted and sentenced to undergo imprisonment for a period of one year and to pay a fine of ‘.1,000/-, by th