In Brief
The appellants were convicted by the trial court under Section 7 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955, with a sentence of three months' rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs.500 each. The High Court upheld the conviction and fine. The Supreme Court partly allowed the appeal, holding that as the appellants were first offenders with no criminal antecedents, they should be dealt with under Section 360 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1908, and granted probation under the Probation of Offenders Act, 1958. The Court upheld the conviction and fine but set aside the imprisonment sentence.
The lawyer headnote and full judgment text are available to registered users.