Point of Law: Criminal Law - Unauthorized possession of 12 bags of PDS rice, each bag containing 50 kg and beer bottles from house of petitioner - Section 7 of E.C. Act, 1955 it is clear that said section provides punishment for violation of order made under Section 3 of Act. Section 3 of E.C. Act, 1955 empowers the Central Government to make orders for control of production, supply, and distribution etc. of essential commodities

JUDGMENT :

S.G. CHATTOPADHYAY, J.

1. This Criminal revision petition is directed against the judgment dated 06.08.2018 delivered in Criminal Appeal No. 1(01) of 2017 by the Additional Sessions Judge, Gomati Judicial District, Udaipur affirming the judgment and order of conviction and sentence passed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Gomati Judicial District, Udaipur convicting the petitioner for committing offence punishable under Section 7(1)(a)(ii) of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 and sentencing them as follows:

The petitioners have challenged their conviction and sentence by means of filing this criminal revision petition.

2. The genesis of the prosecution case is rooted in the suo motu FIR lodged by Dipak Bhattacharjee (PW-8) at Kakraban Police Station alleging that pursuant to a tip-off received from secret source of police, he along with his accompanying police staff carried out a raid in the house of the petitioners who were reported to have stored huge quantity of ration rice (PDS rice) in their respective houses. During such raid the informant seized 12 bags of PDS rice, each bag containing 50 kg from the house of petitioner, Titash Sarkar. At the time of the said raid petitioner was not available at home. Members of his family could not offer any kind of explanation to the informant with regard to the possession of the said rice. On the same day, the informant seized 30 bags of PDS rice, each bag containing 50 KG from the house of Dulal Sarkar. Apart from said rice, 12 bottles of beer were also recovered and seized from the house of Dulal Sarkar. Petitioner Dulal Sarkar was not also available at home at the time of raid and seizure. Members of his family failed to account for such unauthorized possession of PDS rice and beer by said petitioner Dulal Sarkar. The informant (PW-8) had drawn up two separate seizure lists in presence of witnesses and then lodged the suo motu FIR at the police station.

3. Based on his FIR, Kakraban PS case No. 59 of 2014 under Section 7(1)(a)(ii) was registered for contravention of Tripura Foodstuff Dealers’ Licensing Order, 2010 and investigation of the case was taken up by the investigating agency.

4. During investigation, Chittaranjan Das, Sub Inspector of police of Kakraban Police Station (PW-14) formally seized said PDS rice by two separate seizure lists which were initially seized by the informant police officer. After seizure, he deposited said rice bags at Kakaraban food godown pursuant to Court’s order. Thereafter he visited the crime scene and examined the witnesses who were found acquainted with the facts of the case and recorded their police statements under Section 161 Cr.P.C. He had also drawn hand sketch map of the crime scene indicating the material locations by a separate index. Samples were drawn from each of the seized rice bags for examination by experts to ascertain whether those were PDS rice. The expert report (Exbt.14) was later collected by him and the investigation was closed. After closure of investigation, he submitted Charge-Sheet No. 72 of 2014 dated 30.06.2014 against the petitioners for having committed offence punishable under Section 7(1)(a)(ii), E.C. Act, 1955 and Section 69 of the Tripura Excise Act.

5. The Chief Judicial Magistrate, South Tripura, Udaipur(as it was then) received the said charge-sheet and on the facts of the case took cognizance of offence punishable under Section 7(1)(a)(ii), E.C. Act, 1955 and Section 69 of Tripura Excise Act. But the trial Court proceeded to try the case only for the offence punishable under E.C. Act, 1955 and at the commencement of trial framed the following charge against the