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TMI Blog2014 (11) TMI 1263X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ver the alleged loan, as envisaged under the indicated provisions of the Money lender's Act and in view of such legal disabilities attached to the complaint, as discussed here-in-above, are put together, then, in that eventuality, to my mind, the conclusion is irresistible and inescapable that he (complainant) cannot adhere to initiate the criminal prosecution against the respondent within the meaning and in the garb of complaint u/s 138 of the NI Act. Meaning thereby, the trial Magistrate has examined the matter in the right perspective and recorded the cogent grounds in this behalf. The learned counsel for complainant did not point out any material, much less cogent, so as to warrant any interference in the present matter. Such articulated impugned judgment of acquittal, containing valid reasons, cannot possibly be interfered with by this Court, in exercise of limited jurisdiction u/s 378(4) Cr.PC, unless and until, the same is illegal, perverse and without jurisdiction - Since no such patent illegality or legal infirmity has been pointed out by the learned counsel for complainant, so, the impugned judgment of acquittal deserves to be and is hereby maintained in the obtain ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ainant, the statement of the respondent was recorded. The entire incriminating material/evidence was put to enable him to explain any circumstance appearing against him on the record, as contemplated under section 313 Cr.PC. He has stoutly denied the entire evidence of complainant in its totality and termed the pointed complaint as false. 4. Likewise, considering the entire oral as well as documentary evidence brought on record, the trial Court dismissed the complaint of complainant and acquitted the respondent from the indicated offence, by way of impugned judgment of acquittal dated 4.6.2014. 5. Aggrieved thereby, the complainant has preferred the present petition for leave to appeal to challenge the impugned judgment of acquittal, invoking the provisions of section 378(4) Cr.PC. That is how I am seized of the matter. 6. Having heard the learned counsel for the petitioner, having gone through the evidence on record with his valuable assistance and after bestowal of thoughts over the entire matter, to my mind, there is no merit in the instant petition in this context. 7. At the very outset, it may be added here that the jurisdiction of the appellate Court in case of ac ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... bly failed in this relevant connection and the present petition deserves to be dismissed for the reasons mentioned here-in-below. 10. As is evident from the record that the case of complainant from the very beginning was that the respondent was a Farmer at the relevant time. He used to borrow money from him for agricultural purpose with an understanding that he would repay the amount of loan along with interest at the rate of 24% per annum. At the same time, the respondent had promised to sell his agricultural produce at the shop of complainant. Subsequently, he stopped doing so in the year 2010. Thereafter, the complainant filed the instant complaint against him in the indicated manner. The loan for agricultural purpose was allegedly advanced by the complainant to the respondent and it was stated to have been entered in the Bahi entries. No evidence, muchless cogent, is forthcoming on record even to suggest remotely, how, when, in what manner, on what date, how much amount was advanced, by means of Bahi entries and how much balance amount remains to be paid by the respondent to the complainant. 11. What cannot possibly be disputed here is that such Bahi entries are not the i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... u/s 138 of the NI Act against the respondent. 14. Sequelly, there is yet another aspect of the matter, which can be viewed entirely from a different angle. The case set up by the complainant in his complaint was that he used to advance loan to the respondent for agricultural purpose from time to time and he was required to repay the loan along with interest at the rate of 24 per cent per annum. Not only that, he has also categorically acknowledged that he used to lend money on credit basis to different persons, but he did not possess any money lender's licence. That means, the complainant was engaged in money lending business to the public at large and did not possess the money lender's licence. Indisputably, The Punjab Registration of Money-lender's Act, 1938 (hereinafter to be referred as the Money-lender's Act ) is applicable to the State of Haryana by substituting the word Haryana by means of Adaptation of Law Order 1968. Section 4(2) postulates that no money lender shall carry on the business of advancing loans unless he gets himself registered under sub- section (1). Any money lender, who contravenes these provisions, shall be liable on conviction to a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... osecution against the respondent within the meaning and in the garb of complaint u/s 138 of the NI Act. Hence, the trial Court has correctly acquitted the respondent, by way of impugned judgment of acquittal dated 4.6.2014, which, in substance, is as under (paras 16 17) :- 16. Section 3 of the Act provides that the suit by a money lender for recovery of loan, lent within a valid license, shall be dismissed. Now the court was required to ascertain whether Section 3 of the Act would cover a complaint filed under Negotiable Instruments Act or not. To decide the same, reliance has to be placed upon the law laid down by the Hon'ble Bombay High Court, provisions of Bombay Money Lenders Act, 1946 and object behind the passing of the Punjab Registration of Money-lenders' Act as applicable to Haryana. Under the Bombay Money Lenders Act, 1946 the suit filed by a money lender for recovery of loan without a valid license has to be dismissed. The Hon'ble Bombay High Court in case titled as Smt.Nanda Vs. Nandkishor 2010(2) CCC 288 (Bombay) has held that the word in any suit are wider in scope and embrace any suit or proceeding initiated by a money lender who is required to ho ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dingly it was expected of him that he must be maintaining day book or ledger account of the accused in ordinary course of his business. The day book was the book in which the dealings of the complainant with all the persons should be entered on day to day basis and thereafter entries should be entered on the basis of day book in the ledger account of concerned person. It is a matter of common practice that the complainant/lender takes signatures of the accused/borrower either on the entries mentioned on the day book or in the concerned ledger account. Therefore, it was incumbent on the complainant to furnish the day book or ledger account in support of his version because the liability of the accused could not be ascertained in any other manner. The complainant only tendered day book and ledger account for the year 2010-11 but in absence of day book and ledger account 2004-05 onwards, neither the complainant could have determined the liability of the accused nor the court could so the same. In absence of the complete books of account, the amount lent to the accused on different occasions could not be ascertained and accordingly it could not be said that the amount of Rs.1,50,000/- ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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