The High Court allowed the criminal appeal against conviction under the Abkari Act for possession of arrack. The court discharged the bail bond and acquitted the appellant, finding that the lack of a forwarded note rendered the chemical analysis evidence non-authentic.
Conviction and sentence set aside; appellant acquitted; bail bond discharged.
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.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE B.SUDHEENDRA KUMAR
FRIDAY, THE 26TH DAY OF JULY 2019 / 4TH SRAVANA, 1941
CRL.A.No.580 of 2007
AGAINST THE ORDER/JUDGMENT IN SC 495/2002 of SESSIONS COURT, KOTTARAKKARA, DATED 21-03-2007
APPELLANT/S/ACCUSED:
VENUGOPAL
S/O KRISHNA PILLAI, LEKSHMIVILASOM, PALLIMUKKU, MANALIL MURI,, AYIRANALLOOR VILLAGE, KOLLAM DISTRICT.
BY ADVS. SRI.M.V.THAMBAN SRI.K.V.ANIL KUMAR
RESPONDENT/S/COMPLAINANT:
STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR,, HIGH COURT OF KERALA, ERNAKULAM.
SRI.C.S.HRITHWIK,PP
THIS CRIMINAL APPEAL HAVING BEEN FINALLY HEARD ON 26.07.2019, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING:
CRL.A.No.580 of 2007
2
JUDGMENT
The appellant was convicted and sentenced by the court below under Sections 55(i) and 8(2) of the Abkari Act.
Abkari Act.
that since no forwarding note was produced and marked before the court, the appellant is entitled to benefit of doubt.
3
CRL.A.No.580 of 2007
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 no forwarding note was produced and marked before the court, there is no link evidence connecting the appellant with the sample analysed in the laboratory. Consequently, the conviction and sentence passed by the court below, relying on Ext.P2 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 and the appellant stands acquitted. The bail bond of the appellant stands discharged.
Sd/-
B.SUDHEENDRA KUMAR
JUDGE
RK/26.07.2019
1 issue framed by the court
Whether the conviction can be sustained without a forwarding note to guarantee the tamper-proof despatch of the sample analysed in the laboratory.
1 provisions across 1 enactments
Venugopal
State of Kerala
B.Sudheendra Kumar
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
