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TMI Blog1972 (1) TMI 119X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Sub-Divisional Officer, Sadar, Chapra, against Bishundeo Rai, Sheo Deo Prasad Rai, Mohan Rai, Jangli Rai and the appellant stating that they entered into a conspiracy and forged a Zerpeshgi deed on, 25.1.1964 purporting to be executed by Bishundeo Rai and Nageshwar Rai in favour of Jangli Rai in which Sheo Deo Prasad Rai falsely personated Nageshwar Rai. The Sessions Court, to which the case was committed, after trial, came to the conclusion that Sheo Deo Prasad Rai, posing as Nageshwar, son of Bujhaswan, executed the Zerpeshgi deed and that Sheo Deo Prasad Rai falsely personated as Nageshwar before the Sub-Registrar, that no such person as Nageshwar existed and that Bishundeo Rai, the father of Sheo Deo Prasad Rai and co-executant's of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nowledge of a registering officer in his official capacity may be commenced by or with the permission of the Inspector General, the Registrar or the Sub-Registrar, in whose territories, district or Sub-district, as the case may be, the offence has been committed. (2) Offences punishable under this Act shall be triable by any Court or officer exercising powers not less than those of a Magistrate of the second class. On a reading of the section, it would be clear that it deals only with prosecution for an offence under the Act coming to the knowledge of the Registering Officer in his official capacity. It, in effect, provides that where an offence comes to the knowledge of the Registering Officer in his official capacity, a prosecution may ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r consideration and a Full Bench of the Calcutta High Court answered the question by saying that the section is not prohibitory in character and that it does not preclude a private person from commencing a prosecution for an offence under the Act without the permission as envisaged in the section. This case has been followed by the Madras High Court in Re Piranu Nadathi and Ors. I.L.R. 40 Madras 880. There also the Court has taken the view that the section is an enabling one in that it only authorises the authorities mentioned therein to commence a prosecution, and does not prohibit a private person from commencing a prosecution without the permission as required by the section. In Emperor v. Yesa Nana Bidwagh and Ors. A.I.R. 1937 Bom 191, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... that the offences contemplated by Sections 81 and 82 of the Act are offences committed against registering authority, that only indirectly that private persons would be affected and, therefore, the provisions of the section are prohibitory in character. In our view, this reading of the section is inadmissible for the obvious reason that the section, as we have said, provides only for one type of cases, namely, cases in which the commission of an offence under the Act comes to the knowledge of the Registering Officer in his official capacity and even there, the language of the section is permissive and not mandatory. Section 81 of the Act makes the endorsing, copying, translating or registering of a document by a Registering Officer charged ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... that a private person will be more seriously injured by the action of an offender who not only forges a document but endeavours to give it a higher efficacy by registering it, we can perceive no reason why the private person should be denied the liberty to prosecute the offender. We also see no reason why a registering officer guilty of an offence under Section 81 of the Act should get immunity from prosecution by a private individual injured thereby. Counsel for the appellant referred to the decision of this Court in K.M. Kanavi v. State of Mysore 1968CriLJ1510 and contended that Section 83 of the Act is prohibitory in character. There is no merit in this contention as the language of the provision there considered was totally different. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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