- (1.) Rachit Bansal and Kamal Kishore Bansal, the petitioners, by way of above mentioned petitions, seek pre-arrest bail in a case registered by way of FIR No.56 dated 23.8.2011 at Police Station Sadar, District Gurdaspur for an offence punishable under sections 420, 409 read with section 34 of Indian Penal Code.
(2.) Learned counsel for the petitioners has submitted that it was a case where the paddy entrusted to the petitioners was in joint custody of the petitioners and Punjab State Civil Supplies Corporation Limited (PUNSUP). He drew my attention in this regard to an agreement, (Annexure P1) entered into between the petitioners and PUNSUP, where it is mentioned that the paddy would be in the joint custody of PUNSUP and the millers till its milling is complete and rice is delivered to Food Corporation of India. According to him, physical verification of the paddy was conducted jointly by the petitioners and PUNSUP and the paddy was found to be complete. According to him, thereafter, physical verification was conducted by the officials of PUNSUP at the back of the petitioners and it has been found by them that there was shortage of paddy and rice. According to him, this report cannot be relied upon as the verification was conducted at the back of the petitioners.
(3.) Learned counsel for the petitioners has further submitted that three different stores where paddy had also been kept had not been checked in the physical verification conducted by the officials of PUNSUP. According to him, on a plea raised in this behalf, this court ordered checking of those three godowns. According to him, it was found that theft had taken place in those three godowns and paddy had been stolen. He has further submitted that the matter regarding theft of paddy was reported to the police and a Deputy Superintendent of Police has been conducting enquiry about the same.;