The High Court of Chhattisgarh dismissed the State's criminal appeal against the acquittal of the accused in a cheating case. The Court held that the absence of documentary evidence and the plausible alternative view favouring the accused justified the conviction's reversal.
The appeal was dismissed; the impugned judgment of acquittal was affirmed.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
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NAFR
HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH, BILASPUR
Criminal Appeal No. 1242 of 2000 Judgment reserved on 08.08.2018 Judgment delivered on 12.11.2018
---- Appellant
Versus
---- Respondent
For Appellant/State: Ms. K. Tripti Rao, PL For Respondent/accused: Shri Adil Minhaj, Advocate
Hon'ble Smt. Justice Vimla Singh Kapoor CAV Judgment
This appeal has been filed by the State against the judgment dated 11.08.1999 passed by Judicial Magistrate First Class, Ambikapur in Criminal Case No. 317/1998 acquitting the accused/respondent of the charge under Section 420 IPC.
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Ram Prasad (PW-5), Sukhnandan (PW-4) and Ganesh (PW-3). Ultimately when the job as promised was not provided nor the money was returned, a written report (Ex.P-1) was lodged at Police Station, Ambikapur and based on that FIR (Ex.P-2) was registered against the respondent/accused for an offence under Section 420 IPC. After investigation, the challan was filed by the police under Section 420 IPC followed by framing of charge accordingly.
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of securing employment yet they have not produced any document such as receipt etc. to establish their stand. Further, the mateial on record also suggests that PW-1 and PW-2 were the neighboures of the respondent/accused and being so they are supposed to know whether he was in a position to keep his promise for which money is alleged to have been given by them. More importantly, PW-1 and PW-2 are not illiterate, rather they are the full grown boys in their mid-twenties prosecuting higher studies and therefore, they should have been aware that giving money to secure employment by hook or crook is also a crime, and if they remained ignorant and gave money knowing it to be an offence, law can not help them. In such a situation, the acquittal awarded to the respondent/accused by the Court below does not appear to suffer from any vice. Furthermore, the law holding the field that if the material on record spells of two possible and plausible views, the one standing in favour of the accused has to prevail, also comes to the protection of the respondent/accused.
Sd/-
(Vimla Singh Kapoor) Judge
Jyotishi
3 issues framed by the court
Whether the High Court should allow the State's appeal against the acquittal of the accused for cheating under Section 420 IPC.
Whether the lack of documentary evidence and the surrounding circumstances justify the acquittal of the accused.
Whether a view favourably placed to the accused ought to prevail when the material suggests two plausible possibilities.
State of Madhya Pradesh
Khunnalal
Justice Vimla Singh Kapoor
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
