The principle of double jeopardy prevents a person from being tried or punished twice for the same offense.

( 1 ) THIS application under Article 226 of the Constitution of India has been filed for quashing the first information report of Jamtara (Mihijam) P. S. Case No. 6/ 2004 dated 11. 1. 2004 under Section 407 and 420 of the Indian Penal Code.

( 2 ) FACTS leading to the filing of this application are that earlier to this first information report, one more first information report was lodged at chirkunda P. S. , which was drawn up on the written report, dated 2/6/2003, of Niranjan Agarwal to the effect that Niranjan Agarwal is carrying on the business of transporting goods and the same was being done in the name of his firm M/s allied Carriers, Dhanbad. On 15. 5. 2002 at about 6. 30 AM he. received a call from one sharmaji of S. S. Roadways of Bokaro that he supplies vehicles on rent for Haryana and as such, on enquiry from him, it appears that the charges for the same to be taken to hissar in Haryana. The charges were settled at Rs. 1,110/- per tonne and he requested this petitioner to get the goods loaded on truck No. HR-37-1127 and that he had told him that truck was parked near Rampur checkpost in West Bengal. The informant, as alleged, had sent his employee Dilip verma to the said place and contacted the driver namely Munna Singh of the said truck. Thereafter the driver had called on telephone No. 286824 of S. S. Roadways , bokaro and then he had taken the truck to m/s Ferro Alloys Ltd, which is situated within Mihijam P. S. for loading the goods. It is further stated that the informant has again rang up S. S. Roadways and gave this information. Thereafter the truck was loaded with 600 packets of M. C. C. Silko Manganese weighing 300240 MTs valued at Rs. 1,65,000/- to be delivered the same at Bajaj dycam, HIissar in Haryana. It is further stated that along with the factory challan, goods were also handed over with the Excise Invoice. After loading, the same truck was brought at Chirkunda transporting office of the informant, where the informant is alleged to have verified all the documents of the truck in question and thereafter he had taken the signature of the driver. He had paid a sum of Rs. 26,500/- out of the total charges of Rs. 33,300/- as advance to the driver and he instructed him that the balance charges are to be collected from the consignee after the delivery of the goods. It is further stated that on 28/5/2003 the informant received a telephonic call from anjani Fero Alloys Ltd. that the goods have not been delivered as yet and thereafter the informant has rung up the S. S. Roadways, bokaro on the telephone No. 286824 but he could not talk with Sri Sharma, the petitioner. He had also tried to contact the numbers of the owner of the said truck as given to him by the driver but he did not get any response from there. It is also stated that he received a letter on 29/5/2003 from M/s anjani Ferro Alloys and then he had sent his staff to enquire about the vehicle but he could not know anything and in such circumstances, informant lodged the first information report against this petitioner as well as against the driver and the owner of the truck in question on the basis of which a first information report was drawn up and police took up the investigation of the case. Petitioner was arrested in due course and ultimately he was granted bail by the High Court.

( 3 ) LEARNED counsel appearing for the petitioner, submitted that the goods had been supplied by M/s Anjani Ferro Alloys ltd, which is situated in the district of jamtara on the information given by M/s anjani Ferro Alloys Ltd. of Mihijam. The informant of Chirkunda Police Station case had taken action in this matter against this petitioner, the driver and the owner of the truck in question and the police had been proceeding with the same and it was regarding this very consignment. This case had been originally started on the basis of a complaint, which is P. C. R. No. 304/2003 and the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, on receipt of this complaint petit