STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Additional Sessions Judge Jammu Sham Lal Lalhal on Tuesday set-aside the order of Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Court wherein Ex-Minister Abdul Majid Wani and his brother Abdul Karim were discharged from illegal conservation of unmarked uprooted trees as well as fresh felling damage in Compartment Nos. 31, 35-B and 37 Marmat forcibly and directed CJM Jammu to frame charges against the accused persons. The court order came in a revision petition filed against the discharge of Ex-Minister Abdul Majid Wani and his brother Abdul Karim. Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) Abdul Hafiz appeared for the State.
According to case, complainant namely Mohammad Hakim, Range Officer, Forest Range, Marmat lodged a written report before the Superintendent of Police Doda on July 8, 1993 alleging therein that the Block Officer Behote has reported that about 300 labourers of Ghulam Mohd Wani, Contractor SFC have entered in compartment Nos. 31, 35-B and 37 Marmat and started illegal conservation of unmarked uprooted trees as well as fresh felling damage in these compartments forcibly and this report was endorsed by Dy. SP Doda to SHO Doda for necessary action under law and on the receipt of this report/complaint a case FIR No.77/1993 for the commission of offence under Section 6 Forest Act was registered in Police Station Doda on July 12, 1993. During investigation, timber/wood of different dimensions were seized from the aforesaid compartments and kept on the Superdnama of one Sunder Nath Guard and a total loss of Rs. 85,734.22 NP was assessed to have been caused by the accused persons to the State Exchequer by hatching a criminal conspiracy. After the conclusion of the investigation, a Challan for the commission of offences under Sections 379, 420-A, 409, 120-B and 109 RPC and 6 Forest Act was produced against the accused Mohd Akram and others in the Court on January 13, 2011.
CJM, Jammu after hearing the SPO for the State and Counsel for the accused passed the impugned order dated November 9, 2013 whereby the Trial, court discharged the accused Ghulam Ahmed Wani, Abdul Karim and Abdul Majid Wani for the commission of offences under aforesaid sections and it is this order which is assailed by the State on the grounds that the Trial Court has not considered the whole evidence brought on record during investigation of the case in its right perspective and has mainly relied upon the facts and circumstances advanced by the Counsel for the accused.
Additional Sessions Judge Jammu after going through the revision, observed that at the stage of considering the prosecution case for Charge and Discharge of the accused, the Trial Courts are not required to sift, weigh and appreciate the prosecution evidence and the material placed on records by the prosecution in support of its case and all that, they, at this stage, are required to find, is as to whether or not, a case for proceeding against the accused was made out on the basis of the Final Police Report, the statements of the witnesses recorded during the investigation, the material placed on records and sought to be produced during the trial, in support thereof, and in case there was no material to support the indicated Charge, to discharge the accused, if the Charge against him was found groundless, spelling out reasons, disclosing its mind, in support thereof.
With these observations, Court held that the impugned order dated November 9, 2013 passed by the CJM Jammu is set aside as being illegal, erroneous and perverse and directed CJM Jammu to hear the parties afresh after procuring the attendance of the accused persons and frame the charges against the accused persons.