JUDGEMENT
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(1.) ANTICIPATORY bail application filed by petitioners Rohinton H Pithwalla and Mahatab Pithawalla in connection with Complaint Case Being C/1 Case No. 1522 of 2012 pending in the court of learned
Judicial Magistrate, 1st Class, Jamshedpur is moved by Sri Anil Kumar and opposed by Sri
Shekhar Sinha learned Additional P.P. and Sri Sumeet Gadodia, learned counsel for the O.P. No.
(2.) IT is alleged that petitioner no. 1 being the Head of marketing of M/s. Hardrock Fabrication Private Limited (complainant company) made certain negotiation with M/s. Telcon Ltd for setting up
a new plant of the complainant company at Kharagpur. It is further alleged that petitioner no. 2,
who is the wife of petitioner no. 1. was employed in the company as Executive Finance Officer and
she was receiving salary of Rs. 30,000/ - per month. It is stated that later on petitioner no. 1 wrote
a letter to M/s Telcon Ltd and represented himself as the Director Marketing of complainant
company and said that complainant company wants to establish a new unit , namely, M/s. Torro
Processors India Pvt. Ltd. at Kharagpur and on that pretext seek support of Telcon to set up that
unit. It is alleged that the petitioner no. 1, while he was in the service of complainant's
company had illegally stolen drawing and design of complainant's company of cutting and
processing for getting the job alloted in favour of M/s. Torro Processors India Pvt. Ltd. It is further
alleged that both petitioners had embezzled Rs. 23,000,00/ - of the complainant's company.
Accordingly, the present case has been filed.
2 It is submitted by Sri Anil Kumar,learned counsel appearing for the petitioners that petitioners are innocent and they have been falsely implicated in this case. It is further submitted that both the
petitioners had left the job of the com plainant's company in the month of April, 2011.Thus,
the question of stealing drawing and design of complainant's company for obtaining the job,
in favour of M/s. Torro Processors India Pvt. Ltd., does not arise. He submits that the documents
filed in the supplementary affidavit are forged and fabricated. It is submitted that in complaint
petition, the complainant's company had stated that petitioner no. 2 is working in the
company as Executive Finance Officer, but it filed a document in the supplementary counter
affidavit to show that petitioner no. 2 was working in the company as Head of Finance, which is
contradictory and against the case of complainant. It is further submitted that in fact petitioner no. 1
had received Rs. 6,30,000/ - vide cheque no. 136881, whereas petitioner no. 2 had received Rs.
4,42,000/ - vide cheque no. 136882, as bonus, thus the question of misappropriation of the said amount does not arise. So far the rest of the amount is concerned, it is submitted that petitioners
never received those money and the money receipt annexed by the complainant company, in the
counter affidavit are forged and fabricated. Accordingly, it is submitted that the petitioners may be
enlarged on anticipatory bail. Sri Sumeet Gadodia, learned counsel appearing for the O.P. No. 2
submits that the claim of the petitioners that they have received money through cheuqe as bonus
is incorrect and against the admitted documents. He submits that both the petitioners had filed
Income Tax Return vide Annexure -J Series, in which they have not stated that they received any
amount as bonus, which itself shows that no such bonus paid to them. He submits that in fact they
misappropriated aforesaid amount. It is also submitted that Annexure - I Series shows that both
petitioners received cash money as advance and in token of the said receipt, they put their
signature on the column of receiver. It is also submitted that petitioner no. 2 was initially appointed
as a Finance Executive but later on she was promoted to the post of Head of Finance and her
salary enhanced from Rs. 30,000/ - per month to Rs. 50,000/ - per month. He brought to my notice
Annexure -N, which is the Ledger account of petitioner no. 2, to show that her salary was
enhanced from Rs. 30,000/ - to Rs. 50,000/ - per month. Learned counsel also brought to my notice
Annexure -P , Authorities and Delegations Policy of the complainant's company, to show that
petitioner no. 2 being Head of Finance can withdraw amount from the company towards the
expenditure relating to business development of the company. Accordingly, it is submitted that
both the petitioners misappropriated companies amount. Therefore they do not deserve to be
enlarged on anticipatory bail. Sri. Shekhar Sinha, learned Additional P.P. also opposed the prayer
for anticipatory bail.
Having heard the submissions, I have gone through the record of the case. At paragraph no. 21 of the anticipatory bail application, petitioners admitted that they received Rs. 6,30,000/ - and Rs.
(3.) ,42,000/ - respectively as bonus from the complainant's company. But no rule and/ or letter produced before me to show that petitioners being officers of the company are entitled to get
bonus. It further appears from Annexure -J Series that petitioners had not shown aforesaid amount
in their Income Tax Return as Income. As noticed above, I find that petitioner no. 2 was later on
promoted to the post of Head of Finance and being Head of Finance, she is entitled to withdraw
advance money from the company for the purpose of expenditure of business development. Under
the said circumstance, averments made at paragraph no. 21 of the anticipatory bail application
does not inspire confidence.;