HARI SAO AND ANR. versus STATE OF BIHAR

Citation: [1970] 2 S.C.R. 823 · Decided: 15-10-1969 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: S.M. SIKRI · Disposal: Appeal(s) allowed

Cited by 1 judgment(s) · see the full citation network in Lexace

Judgment (excerpt)

A 
HARi SAO AND ANR. 
v. 
STATE OF BIHAR 
October IS, 1969 
823 
B 
[S. M. SIKRI, G. K. MITTER AND P. JAGANMOHAN REDDY, JJ.] 
c 
D 
E 
F 
G 
H 
Indian Railways Act (9 of 1890), ss. 73 and 74 and Goods Tariff 
Genernl Rules, rr. IS anJ 22-Scope of-Issue of railway receipt by rail· 
way-Description, number and weight of goods not accepted b;1 railway 
but only as alleged by co1111ignor-Despatch of different goods-If 
amounts to cheating under s. 415, Indian Penal Code, 1860. 
On the production of a forwarding note for booking a consignment 
of dry chillies to Calcutta, a railway wagon was allotted to the appellants 
who loaded it without any help from any railway employee. The wa.11on 
was rivetted and card labels were fixed on both sides. A railway receipt 
.vas made out wherein the consignment was 'said to contain' 251 bags of 
dry chillies. 
The letters "L/U" were endorsed on the receipt meaning 
that the responsibility of load.in~ . and unloading rested with the consipor. 
There was no facility for weighing the goods at the loading station and 
it was indicated that the weight was as given by the consignor by the en· 
dorsement S.W.A. (Sender's weight accepted). The Wagon was attached 
to a goods train which left for Calcutta. Two days later the seal on one 
side of the wagon was found broken and when the wagon was examined 
it was found to contain 197 bags of chaff instead of 251 bags of chillies. 
The police investigated into the matter and filed a charge sheet against the 
appellant and .they were convicted of the offence of cheating and tho 
conviction was confirmed by the High Court. It was found that the 
appellants had obtained a sum of Rs. 5,500 from a third party by handing 
over the railway receipt to him representing that they had booked 251 
bags of chillies. 
Jn- appeal to this Court, 
HELD : The appellants had by deceiving the Station Master induced 
him to deliver a railway receipt which they had used as a valuable secu-
rity, but, the false representation made by them in obtaining the receipt, 
in the form in which it was issued, did not cast any additional liability on 
the Railway and therefore, the issue of the receipt did not cause any 
damage or harm to the railway. 
Hence no question of cheating the r1il .. 
way or Station Master arose in the case. 
[829 Fl 
The railway did not run any additional risk or liability in acting upon 
the representation of the ap~Jlants and issuing the receipt because, there 
would be no presumption that the goods put in the wagon were chillies 
since the railway did not accept the consignment as such but described 
as allegedly containing 251 ba~s of chillies. 
Nor was there any accep-
tance of the weight of the goods. In case of loss the appellants had to 
prove that they had put on rd! 251 bags of chillies with their weight and 
approximate value, before any liability of the railway could arise under 
ss. 73 and 74 of the Indian Railways Act. 
Under r. 15 of the Goods 
Tariff General Rules the mention of the weight of the goods in the 
receipt did. not amount to an admission in that behalf by the railway, and 
Rule 22 read with Rule 24(2) only made a false declaration as to goods 
in a forwarding note subiect to the penalty of a fine in addition to .the 
liability to pay 'for the freight of the goods at the proper rate. (828 A-0] 
824 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS 
[1970] 2 S.C.R. 
Dominion of India 
v. 
Firm Museram Kishunprasad, 
A.J.R. 
1950 
Nagpur 85 and Union of India v. S, p, Lekhu Reddiar. A.I.R. 
1956 
Madras 176, approved. 
A 
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Criminal Appeal No. 
.,
240 of 1966. 
Appeal by special leave from the judgment and order dated 
B 
July 4, 1966 of the Patna High Court in Criminal 
Appeal 
No. 524 of 1964. 
K. C. Dua and U. P. Singh, for the appellants. 
D. P. Singh, R. K. Garg and Uir:a Datta, for the respondent. 
L. M. Singhvi and S. P. Nayar, for the Union of India. 
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by 
Mitter, J. This appeal by special leave is from a judgment 
and order of the High Court of Patna upholding the conviction 
of the two appellants under s. 420 l.P.C. read with s. 34 but 
reducing the sentence of imprisonment on each of them by 
awarding rigorous imprisonment for three years in place of seven 
years. 
The imposition of fine of Rs. 6,000 on each of 
the 
appellants by the Sessions Judge was maintained PY the High 
Court. The two appellants were charged with having cheated 
the Assistant Station Master of Sheona

Excerpt shown. Read the full judgment & AI analysis in Lexace.