THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE B.CHANDRA KUMAR CRIMINAL PETITION No.1901 of 2008 Dated:- 28.04.2010 Between: Madhula Arjuna Rao …Petitioner AND The State of A.P. and another …Respondent THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE B.CHANDRA KUMAR CRIMINAL PETITION No.1901 of 2008 ORDER: This Criminal Petition, under Section 482 Cr.P.C., is filed by the petitioner to quash the proceedings in C.C.No.43 of 2006 on the file of the Additional Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Repalle, Guntur District. Heard the learned counsel on record. The learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the Food Inspector lifted the samples on 12.05.2004 and the Public Analyst delivered his report on 29.05.2004. Written consent to launch prosecution against the petitioner / accused was obtained on 06.01.2005 and corrigendum orders on 30.06.2005 and finally, complaint was filed on 23.02.2005 and thus the valuable right to make a request to the Court to send the sample for re-analysis to the Central Food Laboratory has been defeated. His second submission is that notice within the period prescribed under Section 13(2)of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 (in short, ‘the Act’) has not been served on the petitioner. The learned Additional Public Prosecutor could not dispute that notice, as required under Section 13(2) the Act, was not served on the petitioner. This Court, by order dated 11.02.2008 in Criminal Petition No.3087 of 2007, while considering the application of A-2 and A-3, allowed the petition quashing the proceedings against A-2 and A-3. Since it is not in dispute that notice, as required under Section 13(2) of the Act, has not been served on the petitioner after filing complaint, and that samples were lifted on 12.05.2004 and the report of the Public Analyst was received on 29.05.2004 and the complaint was filed on 23.02.2006, it is clear that there is inordinate delay in filing the complaint and as such, it is clear that the valuable right of the accused to make a request to the Court to send the sample to the Central Food Laboratory has been lost. Accordingly, the Criminal Petition is allowed quashing proceedings in C.C.No.43 of 2006 on the file of the Additional Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Repalle, Guntur District. _______________________________ JUSTICE B.CHANDRA KUMAR April 28, 2010 Bvv