SECRETARY AGRICULTURAL MARKET COMMITTEE KOTHAVALASA Vs. VENKATESHWARA GROUNDNUT OIL MILLS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In this batch of four Criminal Appeals and six criminal revision cases, the Market Committee, Kottavalasa is the appellant/petitioner. It initiated action against each of the respondents in these cases under Section 23 of the Andhra Pradesh (Agricultural Produce and Live Stocks) Markets Act (16 of 1966), hereinafter referred to as "the Act", and the Rules made thereunder. The respondent in each of the cases did not obtain licence as required under Section 7 of the Act and thereby committed offence punishable under Section 23 of the Act. The learned Magistrate acquitted the respondents on the ground that the Market Committee was not validly constituted. In the criminal revision cases, though the Magistrate initially convicted and imposed penalty on them, on revision, the learned Sessions Judge, Vizianagaram acquitted them on the same ground, namely, the Market Committee was not validly constituted. Thus, the appeals and revisions came to be filed.

(2.) Since common questions of law and facts arise in all these cases, they are being disposed of by a common judgment.

(3.) The facts are not in dispute. The respondent in each case is admittedly a trader as defined under Rule 2(xxxiii), namely, a person ordinarily engaged in the business of buying and selling of notified agricultural produce, livestock or products of livestock. Section 7 of the Act interdicts that