CRR No.2260 of 2005 -1- IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH ***** CRR No.2260 of 2005 Date of decision : December 07, 2010 Parshotam Lal .........Petitioner Vs. State of Punjab ........Respondent CORAM : HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE A.N.JINDAL Present : None for the petitioner. Mr. Amit Chaudhary, AAG, Punjab A.N.JINDAL, J (Oral) : This petition is directed against the judgment dated 19.11.2005 passed by the first Appellate Court, Gurdaspur dismissing the appeal of the petitioner against the judgment dated 12.08.2004 passed by learned Judicial Magistrate Ist Class, Pathankot convicting and sentencing him to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of six months and to pay a fine of Rs.1000/- under Section 61(1)(a) of Punjab Excise Act, 1914. Charges against the petitioner were that he was found having 80 bottles of illicit liquor in his possession. Case was registered and investigated. Ultimately, the petitioner was tried, convicted and sentenced accordingly. His appeal also failed. On scrutiny of the impugned judgment, it transpires that the evidence led by the prosecution, proves the recovery of the contraband, has been appreciated in the right perspective. No such CRR No.2260 of 2005 -2- illegality much less irregularity was found or was detected which may render the judgment as invalid, therefore, the findings returned by the Courts below regarding conviction stand affirmed. Now coming to the quantum of sentence. It is noticed that the occurrence took place way back in the year 2002 petitioner has already suffered a lot of agony due to the pendency of proceedings in the Courts for the last eight years. The petitioner has already undergone about two months of the substantive sentence. Under these circumstances, it would be in the fitness of things to extend some leniency on the quantum of sentence. Resultantly, this petition is dismissed with the modification in the sentence which is reduced to four months without any alteration in the sentence of fine. Copy of the order be sent to the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Gurdaspur. 07.12.2010 (A.N.JINDAL) vcgarg JUDGE