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TMI Blog2025 (5) TMI 931X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cheque Exhibit-CW1/B. issued by him to the original complainant Anokh Ram/appellant. for a sum of Rs. 15,00,000/- drawn on the Himachal Gramin Bank, Branch Bahang, upon presentation, was dishonored due to 'insufficiency of funds'. The complainant served a notice for demand of the cheque amount to the accused-respondent which failed to fetch the desired result whereupon, the complainant filed a complaint dated 15th March, 2014, before the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Manali District, Kullu, Himachal Pradesh Hereinafter, being referred to as the 'trial Court', against the accused-respondent for the offence punishable under section 138 of the NI Act. 5. The trial Court, vide judgment dated 15th November, 2016, allowed the complaint and co ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... heque-in-question. The complainant, in his evidence, affirmatively stated that the accused respondent issued the cheque-in-question to discharge the liability against a loan taken from the complainant which was used by the accused-respondent to cover the expenses towards his medical treatment. 10. The complainant further testified that the amount in question was paid to the accused-respondent and his wife in installments and that, in consideration of the repayment of the due amount, the accused-respondent had initially promised to transfer his land to the complainant. However, the accused-respondent neither repaid the loan nor transferred the land, and instead provided the cheque-in-question to the complainant as repayment of loan, which w ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the complainant being the holder of the cheque in due course was entitled to fill in these details by virtue of Section 118 of the NI Act. 12. The High Court, at first, observed that there existed tenable material fortifying the payment of the cheque amount by the complainant to the accused-respondent. In total contrast to the above observation, the High Court noted that in his statement recorded under Section 313 of the CrPC, the accused-respondent emphatically stated that the cheque-in-question was issued to the complainant in lieu of repayment for the groceries taken in advance from the shop of the complainant for a total worth of Rs. 65,000/-. 13. It is pertinent to note that the complainant emphatically stated in his examination-in- ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... on of the complainant, conducted by defence, that he had given money to the accused-respondent and his wife through cheques dated 11th November, 2010, 12th November, 2010, 16th November, 2016, 13th December, 2010 and 24th March, 2012. 16. The complainant also deposed that he had paid the amounts in question, by providing two cheques, to the accused-respondent and his wife upon their request. The first cheque was for a sum of Rs.1,00,000/- and the other was for a sum of Rs.4,00,000/-. The complainant further asserted that he had advanced a total of Rs.15,00,000/-to the accused-respondent, and towards repayment of this loan, the cheque-in-question was handed over by the accusedrespondent to the complainant. Thus, the complainant led unimpeac ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sion on his part was sufficient to discharge the burden cast upon the accused-respondent. However, we fail to see any rationale behind this reasoning. 19. In the impugned judgment, the High Court proceeded to minutely reappreciate the evidence and has substituted the concurrent findings of fact recorded by the Courts below by its own factual findings without any valid basis and by disregarding the positive evidence available on record, which clearly established that the complainant had paid the amount in question to the accused-respondent through valid sources, with a substantial part of the payment being made by cheques. 20. From the above discussion, we are of the opinion that the judgment rendered by the High Court is based on conjectu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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