ATAM SALES CORPORATION Vs. STATE OF HIMACHAL PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By this order Cr. M.P. (M) No. 88 of 1983 (Atam Sales Corporation Vs. State ) and Cr. M.P. (M) No. 89 of 1983 (Allana Oil Mills Vs. State ) shall be disposed of, as the questions of fact and law involved in both the petitions are the same.

(2.) These Petitioners have been filed under Sec. 482, Code of Criminal Procedure for quashing the proceedings/complaint initiated against the Petitioners and others under Sec. 16(1)(a)(i) read with Sec. 7 of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act (hereinafter called the Act) in the Court of Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrate, Dehra.

(3.) The facts in brief are that the Food Inspector purchased a sample of R.B.D. Palm Oil (Imported), on 25-3-1980 from Shri Mata Parshad (an accused in the case) at village Nagrota Surian. After purchase, the sample was divided into three equal parts and notices etc. were given to the accused (Mata Prasad and M/s. Chandi Ram Ram Narain accused) in the presence of the witnesses. The sample was sent for analysis and ultimately it was found from the report of the public analyst that the sample contained more free fatty acids, that is, 0.54 per cent against the maximum prescribed standard of 0.25 percent for R.B.D. Palm Oil (Imported). The Food Inspector filed a complaint against M/s. Chandi Ram Ram Narain, Oil Merchants, Damatal (accused No. 2) and Shri Mata Parshad S/o Shri Neel Kanth, Shopkeeper, Nagrota Surian, Tehsil Dehra District Kangra (accused No. 1) in the Court of Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrate, Dehra. Both the accused were summoned by the Judicial Magistrate and while recording the statements it was disclosed that M/s. Chandi Ram Ram Narain had purchased the oil in question from M/s. Chuni Lal Dev Raj Mahajan of Mukerian, District Hoshiarpur (accused No. 3) on 22-3-1980 The Judicial Magistrate in these circumstances also summoned M/s. Chuni Lal Dev Raj (accused No. 3) in the case. Thereafter it was disclosed by Dev Raj in an affidavit that M/s. Chuni Lal Dev Raj firm had purchased the oil from M/s. Atam Sales Corporation, Ludhiana (accused No. 4) The Judicial Magistrate, therefore, also summoned M/s. Atam Sales Corporation Kesar Ganj, Ludhiana as an accused under Sec. 20A of the Act On 24-4-1982 Atma Singh of M/s. Atam Sales Corporation Ludhiana filed an application under Sec. 20A of the Act that the oil had been purchased from M/s. Allana Oil Mills Bombay (accused No. 5). The Judicial Magistrate in these circumstances also summoned M/s. Allans Oil Mills Bombay vide his order dated 24-4-1982. In this manner the present two Petitioners (accused Nos. 4 and 5) were impleaded as accused persons in the complaint.