Point of Law: Food adulteration - Bail granted - Mere possession or storage of noxious food or drink would not attract the ingredients of offence under section 273 of the Indian Penal Code, unless it is sold or offered or exposed for sale having knowledge or reason to believe that food or drink has become noxious.

JUDGMENT :

S.K. Sahoo, J.

The petitioner Deepak Agrawal @ Deepu has knocked at the portals of this Court by filing this application under section 439 of Code of Criminal Procedure seeking for bail in connection with Markatnagar P.S. Case No.20 of 2021 corresponding to G.R. Case No.122 of 2021 pending on the file of learned S.D.J.M. (Sadar), Cuttack in which charge sheet has been submitted for the offences punishable under sections 417, 420, 272, 273 of the Indian Penal Code, sections 51, 52, 53, 59 of the Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006 (hereafter referred to as ‘2006 Act’), sections 33 and 36 of the Legal Metrology Act, 2009 (hereafter referred to as ‘2009 Act’) and Rule 32 of the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011 (hereafter referred to as ‘2011 Rules).

The petitioner moved an application for bail in the Court of learned 1st Additional Sessions Judge, Cuttack, which was rejected vide order dated 23.03.2021 mainly on the ground that the investigation of the case was under progress and the complete chain of adulteration was to be unearthed and there was every chance of tampering with the evidence.

2. The factual matrix of the case on hand is that, Pradipta Kishore Naik, Inspector in-charge of Markatnagar police station, Cuttack UPD drew up a plain paper F.I.R. to the effect that on 30.01.2021 while he was in the police station, he got credible information regarding storage of huge quantity of adulterated and duplicate ghee at Plot No.7D/1275, Sector-9, C.D.A., Cuttack by the petitioner. He conducted confidential enquiry and during enquiry, he ascertained that the information received was correct. He intimated the fact to his superiors and also gave requisition to the Food Safety Officer, C.M.C., Cuttack and Senior Inspector, Legal Metrology, Cuttack-II to accompany with him during the search. He along with his staff proceeded to the spot for conducting search in the house of the petitioner to verify the authenticity of the information and he procured two independent witnesses, namely, Bikash Bhanja and Satyananda Das on the way. At about 12.20 p.m., they reached in the house of the petitioner and noticed that the petitioner was present in his house. On being asked, the petitioner disclosed that he was selling different brands of ghee and other burning oils in his house to different small shops at Cuttack and Angul. On verification of his house, it was noticed that there was storage huge quantities of ghee of different brands. There was storage of Balaji Puja Vanaspati Binayak ghee in plastic jars of different quantities, tin jars of Rice bran oil, Maa Tarini til oil (each 100 ml.), Binayak ghee jars (empty jars of different quantities), Jyoti Castrol oil jars (empty jars), Bijaya til oil (empty jars each 200 grams), Binayak til oil (empty jars each 1 kg.), Binayak honey (empty jars each 50 gram), one seed packet of Kumkum seed which was used especially to bring colour in ghee and one electronic weighing machine, packing materials and gas burners. On being asked, the petitioner failed to produce any kind of authority for manufacturing and possessing the above articles. Since the above activities of the petitioner seemed to be illegal to the informant, he kept the spot guarded and made requisition to the Health Officer, C.M.C., Cuttack for deputation of Food Safety Officer and to the Assistant Controller, Weighing and Metrological Department, Cuttack to depute one of the officers to assist him and to remain present during the search. The Senior Inspector, Weighing and Metrology Department and Food Safety Officer arrived at the spot along with their respective team at 2.30 p.m. and in presence of the witnesses, Inspector of Weighing and Metrology Department and Food Safety Officer, the search of the house of the petitioner was conducted and 10 nos. of empty Bijaya til oil plastic bottles (each 200 gram), 10 nos. of empty Binayak til oil plastic bottles (each 200 gram), 40 nos. of empty plastic bottles of Binayak ho