R. Bhattacharya, J. - (1.) This appeal is by Pijush Deb who has been convicted by the Judge, Special Court, Calcutta, under section 5(2) of Act II of 1947 read with section 5 (1) (c) of the said Act and also under section 467 of the Indian Penal Code.
(2.) The appeal arises in the circumstances which I shall briefly state. Pijush Deb, the accused, was a Cashier of the Local Office of the Employees State Insurance Corporation, Ghusuri, Howrah. He was in charge of disbursing the Sickness Benefit to insured workers. It is alleged that the accused misappropriated Government money payable to some insured persons as sickness benefit by forging thumb impressions and signatures of the payees and in some cases by forging signatures of the alleged identifiers of the payees. The allegations of the prosecution relate to several instances, six in number, but the learned Judge of the Special Court found the accused guilty in respect of the three instances and we give the following instances as follows: (1) The accused forged thumb impression of a worker Sk. Cheddi by putting his own right middle finger impression and also forging the signature of one identifier. He did not pay the sickness benefit to the extent of Rs. 61.75 to the worker Sk. Cheddi. (2) He did not pay the sickness benefit amounting to Rs. 39.87 to the worker G.R. Maity on 14.9.66. He put his own left middle finger impression as the thumb impression of Maity on the docket. (3) He did not also pay an amount of Rs. 64.75 to one C. Dhan on 29.9.66 although he put his own thumb impression showing as if he paid to the payee. On the allegations made by the prosecution the following charges were framed: (1) That the accused being a public servant dishonestly and fradulently misappropriated or otherwise converted to his own use between 7.6.66 and 26.9.66 at Ghusuri a total amount of Rs. 262.18 entrusted to him or under his control to be paid to Bansi Ahir an amount of Rs. 38.81, Sk. Cheddi an amount of Rs. 61.75, G. R. Maity Rs. 39.87, Bistu Pada Das Rs. 27|-, C. Dhan Rs. 64.75 and S. K. Muddin Rs. 30|- towards sickness benefit and without making any such payments falsely showed the amounts as paid and acknowledged by the said claimants mentioned above and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 5(2) read with section 5(1) (c) of the Act II of 1947. (2) That the accused on or about 6.8.66 forged exhibit 3 (Payment Docket) purporting to be an acquittance or receipt of Rs. 61.75 alleged to be acknowledged by P.W.13 Sk. Cheddi by putting his own right middle finger impression as payee and signing the name of Tarapada as identifier with intent to commit fraud and thereby he committed an offence punishable under section 467 of the Indian Penal Code. (3) That the accused on or about 14.8.66 forged exhibit 4 (Payment Docket No. 137/99) purporting to be an acquittance or receipt for Rs. 39.87 alleged to have been acknowledged by G.R. Maity by putting his own left middle finger impression as payee with intent to commit fraud and thereby committed an offence punishable under section 467, Indian Penal Code.
(3.) The accused pleaded not guilty denying all allegations. He stated that there might have been some bonafide mistakes in the matter of payment. The learned Judge found him guilty under section 5 (2) of Act II of 1947 regarding Docket Nos. 100|80, 130|99 and 138|110 relating to the insured worker Sk. Cheddi, G.R. Maity and C. Dhar respectively and sentenced him to suffer R.I. for one year. The accused was also found guilty under section 467, Indian Penal Code, as already indicated, but without any separate sentence.;