Sushil Harkauli, J. - (1.) When the petitioner has been acquitted in criminal case by the Criminal Court, it is not open to the licensing authority to cancel the fire arm licence of the petitioner on the ground that the licensee was involved in those criminal cases. However, it is always open to the licensing authority to take evidence of the involvement of licensee in a particular offence and record its own finding on the strength of the evidence because the standard of proof in criminal trial and in licence matter are different.
(2.) In this case, the licensing authority as well as the appellate authority have acted not upon any independent evidence produced before them but merely upon the fact that the petitioner was an accused in two criminal cases although in both of them he had been acquitted.
(3.) Therefore, the operation of the impugned orders of the licensing authority as well as the appellate authority are stayed till further orders.;