1983 (10) TMI 57

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..... >K.S. Tiwana and S.S. Dewan, JJ.   [Order per : S.S. Dewan, J.]. - The Assistant Collector Customs and Central Excise appeals against the acquittal of the respondent on the charge under SECTION 135(1)(b)(ii) of the Customs Act. 2. This appeal appears to us as singularly lacking in merit and it, therefore, suffices to make a brief reference to the facts. Indeed it would be wasteful to trave .....

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..... ef Judicial Magistrate, Jullundur, found a prima facie case against the respondent and accordingly charged him for the said offence. 4. The prosecution examined 4 witnesses in support of its case. The respondent denied the prosecution allegations and pleaded that the shop from where the alleged recovery of the watches was effected belonged to his late father, who died prior to the present raid ; .....

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..... accused is, therefore, held as entitled to the benefit of doubt in this case." In the result, the respondent was given the benefit of doubt and acquitted of the charge framed against him. 6. At the very outset, one may recall that this is an appeal against acquittal and it is by now well settled that unless the findings of the trial court are such that they could not possibly be arrived at reas .....

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..... ve altogether a different version. According to him, these watches were contained in a paper packet and were recovered from one place. Thus the place of recovery of eight watches is not proved beyond doubt due to the discrepancies, regarding the place and the manner those were recovered. Besides these discrepancies, R.S. Bal stated that a number of persons had collected outside the shop at the tim .....

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..... , the respondent could not be held liable for the offence with which he was charged. All these factors make it plain that the trial court in our view was right in not placing reliance on the prosecution evidence. 7. For these reasons, we are of the view that the acquittal of the respondent was wholly justified and the appeal of the State is without merit. The same is hereby dismissed.  
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