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TMI Blog1969 (10) TMI 94X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... by the trial Court, the State can prefer one appeal against the acquittal of all of them. The High Court held such a joint appeal not to be maintainable under Cr.PC and so holding rejected the appeal by the State without going into the merits. The Division Bench of the High Court speaking through Raju, J. recorded a very lengthy order though the reasoning in support of the non-main maintainability of the joint appeal is confined to a couple of pages only. The High Court in its order referred to Sections 258, 410, 417, 419 and 423 of the Code and came to the conclusion that the scheme of Chapter XXXI of the Code as disclosed by these sections and particularly by Section 419 is against the maintainability of a joint appeal by the State agains ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e of difference of opinion with an earlier decision, of referring the question to a larger Bench. Judicial decorum no less than legal propriety forms the basis of judicial procedure. if one thing is more necessary in law than any other thing, it is the quality of certainty. That quality would totally disappear if judges of co-ordinate jurisdiction in a High Court start overruling one another's decision. If one Division Bench of a High Court is unable to distinguish a previous decision of another Division Bench and holding the view that the earlier decision is wrong, itself gives effect to that view, the result would be utter confusion. 4. Other decisions cited containing similar observations are : Jai Keur and Ors. v. Sher Singh etc [1 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... th "criminal business"' and Rule 6 is in the following words : Joint appeal or application by persons affected by the same judgment. 6. All persons aggrieved by a judgment or an order passed in a criminal case, may join in one appeal or application for revision, and one copy of the judgment or order complained of shall be sufficient. 7. This rule, of course, does not in terms cover the case of an appeal by the State against several accused persons jointly tried and acquitted by the trial Court by a common order, but if an appeal by persons jointly tried and convicted is competent, then on principle it is difficult to negative the maintainability of one appeal by the State against a common order acquitting several persons ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... a joint appeal by the State against more than one accused persons. The contrary view taken by the High Court on the construction of this section is clearly unacceptable. Section 417 which provides for an appeal in a case of acquittal empowers the State Government to direct the public prosecutor in any case to present an appeal from an order of acquittal. This section also does not suggest any bar or prohibition against presentation of a joint appeal against several accused persons acquitted in a case. On the other hand, it provides for an appeal in a case, and not against an accused person, who has been acquitted. The plain reading of this section. therefore, seems to be wide enough to permit a joint appeal. Sections 258, 410 and 423 of th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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