HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE G.BHAVANI PRASAD Criminal Petition No.7217 of 2009 Dated : 10.09.2009 Between : M.Gopala Krishna ….. Petitioner a n d The State of A.P. & another ….. Respondents HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE G.BHAVANI PRASAD Criminal Petition No.7217 of 2009 ORDER: Heard Sri T.D.Phani Kumar, learned counsel for the petitioner, and Sri A.Ramesh, learned counsel representing the learned Public Prosecutor, for the first respondent. No notice is being ordered to the second respondent while disposing of the matter at the stage of admission as the order being passed herein no way touches the rights and interests of the second respondent. The petitioner is the sole accused in C.C.No.630 of 2006 on the file of the Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Tanuku, West Godavari District, facing prosecution for an alleged offence punishable under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act. He was absent on the date of hearing on 17.04.2009 and filed Crl.M.P.No.654 of 2009 before the trial Court for condonation of his absence stating that he was suffering from ill-health and that his absence was not willful. The trial Court passed an order stating that the nature of illness is not mentioned and that no medical certificate is filed and that none appeared when the petition was taken for consideration. Observing that the trial was held up due to the absence of the accused and that cross-examination of P.W.1 could not be proceeded with for that reason, the trial Court dismissed the petition and consequently the trial Court ordered issuance of non-bailable warrant against the petitioner for securing his presence before the Court. The grievance of the petitioner was that the issuance of compulsive process for securing his presence was not justified as inspite of his ill-health he informed his counsel over phone about the same, and requested to file a petition to dispense with his presence on the date of hearing. He is a resident of Visakhapatnam and could not have been present in the Court at Tanuku on that day due to his ill health. Even assuming that the petitioner was unsupported by any medical certificate and unspecific about the illness with which the petitioner was suffering, the trial Court should have appreciated that the petitioner is a resident of Visakhapatnam, not a local resident, and therefore, could not have been physically able to produce any medical certificate on the same day. For the fault of the counsel in not appearing before the Court when the matter was called at 4-30 p.m., the petitioner could not have been punished with the compulsive process of non-bailable warrant and it is not stated that he committed any such default earlier without the permission of the Court. Rules of procedure are intended to be handmaids of justice and any technical lapses of the parties need not be punished with savage results. Whatever be the other circumstances, the petitioner who is ready to submit himself to the process of Court can be given one more opportunity in this regard to secure the ends of justice. Therefore, the order passed by the Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Tanuku, West Godavari District, in Crl.M.P.No.654 of 2009 in C.C.No.630 of 2006 on 17.04.2009 is set aside and the said petition is allowed and the non-bailable warrant issued against the petitioner shall be recalled. The petitioner shall appear before the trial Court within 15 days from today and the trial Court shall permit him to participate in the further proceedings in the case as earlier. In case of default by the petitioner in such appearance, the non-bailable warrant shall be executed against him for securing his presence before the Court. The criminal petition is ordered accordingly. ______________________ G.BHAVANI PRASAD, J 10th September, 2009 SUR