HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE K.SURENDER CRIMINAL REVISION CASE No.1660 OF 2009

ORDER:

1. The revision petitioner was convicted for the offence under Section 420 of IPC and sentenced to one year imprisonment and to pay fine of Rs.500/- vide judgment in CC No.675 of 2006 dated 09.05.2008 by the Special Judicial Magistrate of First Class for trial of cases under Prohibition and Excise Acts, Mahabubnagar. The said conviction was confirmed by the Sessions Judge in Appeal.

Aggrieved by the same, the present Revision.

2. According to the prosecution case, the defacto complainant/P.W.1 was the Managing Partner of Sri Laxminarasimha Swamy Traders and BSNL dealer. During the year 2005, BSNL introduced free cell connection scheme to land phone holders without deposit. Taking the scheme as an advantage, the revision petitioner/accused started preparing false documents and proof of addresses. Such documents were submitted along with application forms in the BSNL Office and started collecting sim cards. The said sim cards were sold to customers at a premium price. It came to the knowledge of the department that sim cards were taken by the accused by submitting applications without the knowledge of the actual subscribers of the landline and complaint was filed. Accordingly, having taken the complaint from the department, the police investigated the case and filed charge sheet. During the course of trial, the witnesses P.Ws.1 to 18 were examined, out of which, P.Ws.1 to 9, P.Ws.13 to 16 are the persons in whose names sim cards were taken. In proof of taking sim cards, documents were also filed by the prosecution. In all, Exs.P1 to P27 were marked during the course of trial.

3. Learned Magistrate found that the recovery of MOs.1 to 3 sim cards and MO4, identity card of one Venkatesh and other circumstances placed before the trial Court is convincing and accordingly convicted the accused for the offence under Section 420 IPC.

4. Learned Magistrate further found that P.Ws.13 and 14 stated that they were sent to the shop of P.W.1 for getting sim cards and accused had prepared false documents for obtaining sim cards and submitted them. Apart from the seizure of sim cards from the accused, the entries in the ledger book of P.W.1 reflected the signatures of the accused. For the said reasons learned Magistrate found that the circumstances which were placed by the prosecution made out a clear case of cheating and convicted the accused.

5. The said conviction by the Magistrate was questioned before the Sessions Court vide Criminal Appeal No.88 of 2008. The Sessions Court vide judgment dated 29.09.2009 found that the circumstances placed by the prosecution was enough to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt that it was the accused who had furnished false documents and obtained sim cards from the department.

6. Having gone through the record, the circumstances relied on by the learned Magistrate, confirmed by the learned Sessions Judge cannot be found fault with. The fabricated documents, the evidence of P.Ws.13 and 14, seizure of sim cards and also the signatures available in the ledger seized form P.W.1 clearly reflect complicity of the accused. Accordingly, there are no reasons to set aside the conviction recorded by the trial Court.

7. However, keeping in view that the incident is of the year 2005 and nearly 20 years have passed by, further, learned Assistant Public Prosecutor submits that there are no other similar cases pending against the accused a lenient view can be taken. Accordingly, this Court deems it appropriate to reduce the period of sentence to the period already undergone by the accused.

8. Accordingly, Criminal Revision Case is partly allowed.

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K.SURENDER, J Date: 19.06.2024 kvs