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Judgment
The petitioners had once been prosecuted in C. C. No. 583 of 1957 for failure to pay certain tax payable under Motor Spirit (Taxation on Sales) Act, 1949. The amount of tax then claimed was Rs. 4,333.59nP. After charges had been framed against the petitioners, the prosecutor, the Sales Tax Officer and the petitioner came to an understanding regarding the payment of this tax, in consequence of which the prosecution was withdrawn and an order of acquittal was passed under the provisions of Section 494(b) of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
After a portion of the tax had been paid pursuant to the said understanding between the parties, a balance of about Rs. 987/- was alleged to be still in arrears, and therefore, this second prosecution in C. C. No. 385 of 1958 was commenced. The petitioners plead that the present prosecution was not maintainable in view of the provisions of Section 403 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. This plea has been rejected on the view that the facts are quite different. Hence, this revision petition.
There can be no doubt that the view of the lower Court that the facts are different is wrong. Admittedly the amount now said to be in arrears in the present prosecution is part of the amount which was the subject-matter of the previous prosecution and which was also the subject-matter of the understanding between the parties. These matters are actually alleged by the prosecutor in the present prosecution. It is impossible, therefore, to accept this view.
It is also not disputed that the final order in the last prosecution was an acquittal.
Once these two facts are established, the plea of the petitioners has to be accepted.
The Revision Petition is allowed, and the proceeding in C. C. 385/1958 on the file of the Court of the District Magistrate, Chickmagalur, are quashed.
Revision allowed.