Gujarat High Court
Dipesh Kishorbhai Talreja vs State Of Gujarat on 24 April, 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/8122/2025 ORDER DATED: 24/04/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CRIMINAL MISC.APPLICATION (FOR LEAVE TO APPEAL) NO. 8122 of
2025
In F/CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 15656 of 2025
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DIPESH KISHORBHAI TALREJA
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT & ANR.
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Appearance:
MR BHAVESH P TRIVEDI(2731) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MR RR TRIVEDI(941) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MR.MEET M THAKKAR, APP for the Respondent(s) No. 1
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MS. JUSTICE S.V. PINTO
Date : 24/04/2025
ORAL ORDER
1. The present application is filed by the applicant - original
complainant under Section 419(4) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha
Sanhita, 2023 (for short "BNSS") seeking leave to file an appeal
against the order dated 01.01.2025 passed by the Court of Judicial
Magistrate First Class, Porbandar (hereinafter referred to as the
"learned Trial Court") in Criminal Case No. 2394 of 2016, whereby,
the learned Trial Court has acquitted the respondent Nos.2 to 4 from
the offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act
(hereinafter referred to as the 'NI Act').
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/8122/2025 ORDER DATED: 24/04/2025
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2. Heard learned advocate Mr. Bhavik Bhatt for the applicant for
the applicant, learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the respondent-
State and learned advocate Mr. Digant Kakkad for the respondent Nos.
2 to 4.
3. Learned advocate Mr. Bhavesh Trivedi for the applicant submits
that the applicant is doing business in the name and style of M/s.
Apurva Enterprise and the proprietor of the firm and the respondent
No. 2 is the owner of the M/s. Tulsi Prints. The applicant was was
regularly sending Grey Cloth to the respondent No. 2 -firm and the
amount was being paid in installments by the respondent No. 2 by
cheques on behalf of the respondent No. 2 - Tulsi Prints. A total goods
of the amount of Rs.15,48,713/- were sent to M/s.Tulsi Prints out of
which the respondent No. 2 had paid an amount of Rs.5,50,000/- by
cheques, and an amount of Rs.9,88,713/- was outstanding, towards
which, the cheque No. 000201 dated 15.07.2019 from the account of
M/s.Tulsi Prints with HDFC Bank, Jetpur Branch was issued. The
cheque was deposited by the applicant in his account with Indian
Overseas Bank, Jetpur Branch but the cheque returned unpaid with the
endorsement " Payment Stopped by Drawer". The demand statutory
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/8122/2025 ORDER DATED: 24/04/2025
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notice was sent but the respondent No. 2 refused the notice and did not
repay the amount within stipulated period and hence, the applicant
filed the complaint under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instrument
Act, 1881 before the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Jetpur, which
came to be registered as Criminal Case No. 1689 of 2019.
3.1 The summons were duly served to the respondent No. 2 and the
respondent No. 2 appeared and after the plea was recorded, the
applicant submitted the oral and documentary evidences including the
copies of the bills and the account of the respondent No. 2 with the
applicant's firm. The applicant submitted the bank statement and also
examined the witness Chetanbhai Jentibhai Vasveliya, Assistant Bank
Manager, HDFC Bank to prove the signature of the respondent No.2
on the cheque.
3.2 The learned Trial Court, after hearing the arguments of the
learned advocates for the respective parties, was pleased to acquit the
respondent No. 2 from the offence under Section 138 of the N.I.Act,
mainly on the ground that the applicant was not proved the commercial
transactions with the respondent No. 2 and also that the delivery
chalans had not been produced on record to show that the goods were,
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R/CR.MA/8122/2025 ORDER DATED: 24/04/2025
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in fact, delivered to the respondent No.2. Learned advocate for the
applicant submits that the applicant had produced the statement of
accounts, which showed the transactions entered into and some amount
was already paid by cheques to the applicant. Moreover, the bills
produced by the applicant prove that the goods were received by the
husband of the applicant, who is running his business in the name of
M/s. Laxmi Textiles and the bills bear his signature. There was no
dispute raised with regard to the same by the respondent No. 2 but the
learned Trial Court has not appreciated the entire evidence in proper
perspective. The applicant has a good case on merits and the
application seeking leave to appeal must be granted.
4. Learned APP Ms. Jirga Jhveri, for the respondent No 2 - State has
submitted that the learned Trial Court has appreciated the evidence and
has passed the impugned judgment and order of acquittal and hence the
application seeking leave to appeal must be rejected.
5. Considering the submissions made by the learned advocate for the
applicant as also on perusal of the paper book on record, particularly the
bills produced at Exhs. 8 to 11 and the statement of accounts of the
respondent No. 2 with the applicant Firm at Exhs. 19 to 21 prima - facie,
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it appers that the documents have not been properly appreciated by the
learned Trial Court in proper perspective. The application seeking leave
to appeal deserves consideration and consequently, the same is allowed.
(S. V. PINTO,J)
VVM
