K.B. Panda, J. - (1.)THIS is an appeal filed by the complainant against an order of acquittal passed in complaint case No. 1 C.C. 216 of 1969 wherein Respondents 1 to 3 were being prosecuted under Section 6 of the Untouchability (Offences) Act, 1955 (Act XXII of 1955) and accused 4 to 20 under Section 7 of the said Act, in the circumstances stated hereinafter.
Initially the case of the complainant was that the three Respondents who are barbers did not serve him and his friends who are Sundhis by caste on the ground that they are untouchables. The further case of the prosecution was that the other accused persons 4 to 20 who are of different castes instigated the first three accused persons in not rendering service to the Sundhis on the ground that they are untouchables. The allegation was confined to three instances - once on 1 -6 -1969, another on 2 -6 -1969 and thirdly on 10 -6 -1969, the complaint petition having been filed on 11 -6 -1969.

(2.)THE defence was various namely, that the Sundhis are not treated as untouchables; that they do take part in all festive occasions of the village; that they contribute for the holding of all the ceremonies of Dola Jatra, Car Festival and Chandan Jatra etc. that some of the Sundhis sold liquor publicly for which there was some agitation against them; that the complainant and his friends who are said to be studying in colleges while coming to the village create all sorts of disturbances resulting inconvenience for the movement of the village; that they instigated the villagers to fish from the tank of the village Zamindar to which they did not agree; that they kept the funds of the village and did not render accounts for which there has been bitterness and as a result thereof, the present case has been falsely started.
The prosecution examined 7 witnesses and the defence 3. The learned lower Court in an elaborate judgment held that the prosecution has miserably failed to establish the case as against the accused persons and so acquitted all of them. The complainant came up in appeal and only the appeal as against the first three accused persons now Respondents was admitted and not as against the rest. Thus we are here confined to the case of the three Respondents, namely, the first three accused persons in the lower Court who are barbers.

(3.)THE plea of barber Shyama was that he did not know how to shave, that of Naran Barik was that on 2 -6 -1969 he was not at his home and that of Dharmananda Barik was that he is not the usual barber of the complainant, but it was one Shankar who was to serve him and not himself.