- (1.) The Petitioners have invoked the inherent jurisdiction of this Court under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure with the prayer for quashment of the order dated15.6.2010 by which the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Chatra had taken cognizance of the offence against the Petitioners under Section 414 of the Indian Penal Code as also under Section 7 of the Essential Commodities Act in Hunterganj P.S. Case No. 112/09, corresponding to G.R. No. 644/09. The Petitioners further requested for the quashment of their entire criminal proceedings pending in the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Chatra.
(2.) Prosecution story in short was that the informant Mahabir Shivanand Kindo, Sub Inspector of Police, in his written report presented before the Hunterganj Police narrated that during course of night patrol, he got secret information that a Mini Truck 407 bearing Registration No. BEM 1175 was carrying bags of wheat which was allocated for distribution under P.D.S. from Hunterganj to Dovi to be sold in the black market. The truck was intercepted by the police party. On interrogation, truck driver disclosed his name Mahendra Prasad Sahu @ Mahendra Saw and narrated that he was the owner of the truck and on the instruction of one Kameshwar Singh @ Kamo Singh of village Baluri, P.S. Hunterganj, District-Chatra, he was carrying ninety-six bags of wheat to deliver in the go down of one Naresh Agarwal of village-Khotwara, P.S.-Dovi, District-Gaya (Bihar). On demand, no document was produced by the driver-cum-owner of the truck related to transportation or possession of the wheat bags nor any satisfactory answer could be given whereupon the truck was seized with 96 bags of wheat loaded thereon in presence of the witnesses. Each bag contained 50 Kg. of wheat. The driver-cum-owner of the truck was arrested and case was instituted for the offence under Section 414 of the Indian Penal Code as also under Section 7 of the Essential Commodities Act.
(3.) Learned Counsel, Mr. Binod Singh, submitted that the Petitioner No. 1 Mahendra Prasad Sahu @ Mahendra Saw was admittedly the driver-cum-owner of the said truck, whereas the Petitioner No. 2 Kameshwar Singh @ Kamo Singh was the owner of ninety-six bags of wheat, which were seized by the police.;