HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE B. CHANDRA KUMAR Crl.P.No. 5233 of 2008 Date: 29-04-2010 Between: Tankasala Ashok and another ……….. Petitioners and The State of A.P. and another ………. Respondents HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE B. CHANDRA KUMAR Crl.P.No. 5233 of 2008 ORDER: This Criminal Petition has been filed by A-1 and A-2 to quash the proceedings against them in C.C.No.167 of 2007 on the file of the Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Gadwal, Mahaboob Nagar District. The second respondent herein is the complainant. He filed the complaint under Section 200 of Cr.P.C. alleging that on 27-04-2007 a false and defamatory news item imputing his character has been published in page No.9 of the Vaartha Daily District supplement. The first petitioner is the Editor of the newspaper and the second petitioner is the CMD & ME of the newspaper. No specific allegation has been made against the petitioners that they had any motive or enmity against the complainant to defame him. The only grievance of the complainant is that the news item is false and defamatory. Though it is mentioned that the petitioners have published the news item intentionally, since the news item has been published in the local news item, as the local reporter also has been shown as an Accused, I am of the view that the Managing Director of the news paper (second petitioner) cannot be held responsible for the publication of the said news item. As far as the first petitioner is concerned, a presumption under Section 7 of the Press and Registration of Books Act (for short ‘the Act’) has to be drawn against the Editor, whose name has been printed as Editor of the newspaper, though the said presumption is rebuttable. In view of the above statutory presumption, I feel that the proceedings against the first petitioner cannot be quashed. In view of the above discussion, the Criminal Petition is dismissed in respect of the first petitioner/A-1. The Criminal Petition is allowed in respect of the second petitioner/A-2. The proceedings against the second petitioner/A-2 in C.C.No.167 of 2007 on the file of the Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Gadwal, Mahaboob Nagar District, are hereby quashed. _________________ B. CHANDRA KUMAR, J Date: 29-04-2010 YCR