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Criminal Appeal No. 178 of 1976, decided on 12th February, 1983.

-----S. 468--- Prevention of Corruption Act (II of 1947) S. 5 (2)--For gery--Accused charged with dishonestly making forged entries in stock register by showing excess items over and above indented -Nothing showing whether entries genuinely made by accused as storekeeper and concerned articles misappropriated or whether or not somebody else included certain figures under certain relevant columns of store in said register to show that articles had been issued is order to fabricate case-Evidence on record not showing that prosecution proving its case to hit without any shadow of doubt-Accused given benefit of doubt and acquitted.-[Benefit of doubt].

Ch. Muhammad Bakhsh for Appellant.

Naseem Sabir for A.-G. for the State.

Date of hearing : 22nd February, 1983.

This is an appeal by Bashir Ahmad, appellant, against the judgment of the Special Judge, Anti-Corruption, Lahore, dated 12th February, 1976, convicting the appellant under section 468, P. P. C. (read with section 5 (2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1947, and sentencing him to six months' R. I. with a fine of Rs. 50 or in default thereof to further R. I. for one month. It was also ordered that out of the fine, if realised Rs. 25 would be paid to the Department and that the sentence would run consecutively with the sentence of imprisonment awarded to him in the two other connected cases.

2. The brief facts of the case are that Bashir Ahmad, accused, during the year 1972, while working as Store Keeper, Sub-Division Shah Kot, Tube-well Operation Division, Sheikhupura, by abusing his position, as such, dishonestly made forged entries in the Stock Register Exh. P. B. and criminally misappropriated the following items :-

(1) Nine Figures/ B & G of the value of Rs. 11.48.

(2) One Bag of Cement of the value of Rs. 13.75.

Indent No. 30/41 dated 18th November, 1972 Exh. P. B. requiring the supply of Nine Figure/B & G and Indent No. 631125 dated 18th December, 1972 Exh. P. D. for supply of certain articles mentioned therein, were received by the accused. Against Indent No. 30/41, he supplied some arti cles mentioned therein which he showed in the stock register Exh. P. D. but scored out the entry relating to the nine figures from the Indent and did not supply the same, but showed the same as having been issued in the Stock Register Exh. P.D Likewise, against Indent No. 63/125 Exh. P. D., he supplied some articles mentioned therein, which he showed in the same Stock Register, but without supplying any cement, also showed that he had issued one bag of cement in the same Stock Register as against the said indent, Thus, he misappropriated nine figures/B & G valuing Rs. 11.48 and one bag of cement valuing Rs. 13.75.

3. I have heard the arguments of the learned counsel for the appel lant and the State and have also perused the record. In this case, evidence has been led to show that the two Indents, referred to above, were made on the dates by certain persons, who received Stores .as shown therein at,,; that the appellant by entering excess items over and above the indented ones in the Stock Register Exh. P. D., misappropriated the said items and thus caused a loss to the Government. Unfortunately, the Stock Register Exh. P. D. which also happens to be the register of Receipt and Issue of stores, which constitutes the main plank of the prosecution case does not show the balance stocks held by the Stores for the relevant months for which the same has been maintained. Regarding each month, there are entries showing receipts of stores and materials and issue of the same against various Indents (whose numbers and dates are given thereon), but no balances have been struck at the end of each month, showing the total balance of stores and material in hand with the Store Keeper. In these circumstances, even if entries like the ones referred to by the prosecution have been proved to show that stores and material over and above those Indented were issued (and later misappropriated), there is no way to check up whether the said entries were genuinely made by the appellant as Store Keeper and the concerned articles misappropriated or whether or not somebody had just included certain figures under certain relevant columns of stores in the said register to show that such and such articles had been issued in order to fabricate and case against the store-keeper. Without balances of stock in hand being shown in the said Stock Register Exh. P. D. at the end of each month and carried over to.9 the next, or reliable evidence being produced to conclusively show that the physical stocks of the three concerned articles before 18th November, 1972 was such and such and after 18th December, 1972 it was such and such, it cannot conclusively be said that the three articles referred by the prosecu tion in para. 2 above, were misappropriated. Ch. Muhammad Aslam; Bajwa, Overseer, P. W. 2 states that he checked the record of the stores i.e. Stock Register, Ident Books, Material of site Account Register and to Scrap Register, before submitting his report Exh. P. B. (in Case No 41/2 connected appeal) about the misappropriation. The document Exh. P. I's. does not refer to the physical verification of material and stores in the manner referred to by me, from which actual physical loss can be proved. In these circumstances, the appellant, as Store Keeper, cannot be safely convicted for misappropriation. May be that the appellant has misappropriat ed the stores and material, but from the evidence on record, it cannot be safely said that the prosecution has been able to prove its case to the hilt, without any shadow of doubt. The appellant is, therefore, entitled to the benefit of doubt.

4. For the foregoing reasons, the appellant is given the benefit of doubt. . His conviction and sentence is set aside. Fine, if any recovered from him, shall be refunded to him. The appellant is on bail. His bail bond shall stand discharged.

Appeal accepted.

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