Criminal appeal against conviction under Section 58 of the Abkari Act for possession of arrack. Appellant acquitted and bail bond discharged due to absence of forwarding note, breaking the chain of evidence linking the seized sample to the appellant.
Conviction and sentence set aside; appellant acquitted; bail bond discharged.
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE B.SUDHEENDRA KUMAR
FRIDAY, THE 12TH DAY OF JULY 2019 / 21ST ASHADHA, 1941
CRL.A.No.1682 of 2006
AGAINST THE ORDER/JUDGMENT IN SC 506/2001 of ADDITIONAL S.C.-TRIAL OF ABKARI ACT CASES,NEYYATTINKARA DATED 08-08-2006
APPELLANT/S/ACCUSED:
PRABHAKARAN
S/O SOMAN NADAR, KAKKAKUZHY PUTHEN VEEDU, KAVUMPURAM,, VENGANOOR VILLAGE, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM.
BY ADV. SRI.S.D.ASOKAN
RESPONDENT/S/COMPLAINANT: STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY THE EXCISE INSPECTOR, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM EXCISE RANGE,, THROUGH THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF, KERALA, ERNAKULAM.
PP SRI BINEESH, AMICUS CURIAE SRI PRIYESH KUMAR MP
THIS CRIMINAL APPEAL HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 12.07.2019, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING:
CRL.A.No.1682 of 2006
2
JUDGMENT
The appellant was convicted and sentenced by the court
below under Section 58 of the Abkari Act.
about 3.00 p.m., the appellant was found in possession of 3 litres of arrack in contravention of the provisions of the
Abkari Act.
since no forwarding note was produced and marked before
the court, the appellant is entitled to benefit of doubt.
CRL.A.No.1682 of 2006
3
and marked in this case. Therefore, it has to be held that the prosecution could not establish the tamper-proof despatch of the sample to the laboratory. In the said circumstances, there cannot be any guarantee that the sample produced before the court and analysed in the laboratory was the sample drawn from the contraband seized from the appellant. Since the forwarding note was not produced and marked before the court, there is no link evidence connecting the appellant with the sample analysed in the laboratory. Therefore, the conviction and sentence passed by the court below on the strength of Ext.P6 certificate of chemical analysis cannot be sustained.
In the result, this criminal appeal stands allowed, setting aside the conviction and sentence passed by the court below
CRL.A.No.1682 of 2006
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and the appellant stands acquitted. The bail bond of the
appellant stands discharged.
Sd/-
B.SUDHEENDRA KUMAR
JUDGE
RK/12.07.2019
1 issue framed by the court
Whether the conviction and sentence should be sustained in absence of a forwarding note to link the appellant with the chemically analysed sample.
1 provisions across 1 enactments
PRABHAKARAN
STATE OF KERALA
B SUDHEENDRA KUMAR
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
