IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA Cr.Misc. No.33003 of 2008 1. Krishan Mahto @ Krishan Prasad Mahto, Son of Late Dukhan Mahto, Resident of Village Shivpur, Tikia Toli Musallahpur, PS Sultanganj, District Patna 2. Kallu Gope @ Kali Gope, Son of late Mangal Gope, Resident of Village Shivpur, Tikia Toli, Musallahpur, PS Sultanganj, District Patna --- Petitioners Versus 1. The State Of Bihar. 2. Mr. Murtaja Helal (Assistant Electric Engineer) Electric Supply Branch, Machua Toli, P.E.S.U., Patna. ---- Opposite Parties For the Petitioners : Mr. Satya Ranjan Sinha, Advocate For the State : Mr. Jharkhandi Upadhyay, A.P.P. For the B.S.E.B.: Mr. Prakash Kumar, Advocate ----------- 4 8.7.2011 Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and the counsel appearing on behalf of the State. The petitioners are aggrieved by the order dated 2.7.2008 passed in Sultanganj P.S. Case No. 195 of 2002 by which the application for discharge has been dismissed. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that they have deposited the loss to the Electricity Board mentioned in the First Information Report and as such the oder of cognizance should be quashed. Counsel for the petitioners refers to an unreported case passed in Cr. Misc. No. 12224 of 2007 (Sanjay Kumar & Anr. Vs. The State of Bihar) by which the Court has recorded the fact that the petitioners had deposited the loss caused to the Electricity Board and, therefore, the offence stands compounded in terms of Section 152(3) of the Electricity Act, 2003. Contrary to the aforesaid order, learned counsel for the Board relies on an another Bench decision of this Court reported in 2010(1)PLJR 615. It is submitted that the provisions of Section 152 have not been properly understood by the learned 2 Single Judge passing the order in Cr. Misc. No. 12224 of 2007. Section 152 of The Electricity Act, 2003 reads as follows: 152. Compounding of offences.-(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), the Appropriate Government or any officer authorised by it in this behalf may accept from any consumer or person who committed or who is reasonably suspected of having committed an offence of theft of electricity punishable under this Act, a sum of money by way of compounding of the offence as specified in the Table below: TABLE Nature of Service Rate at which the sum of money for compounding to be collected per Kilowatt (KW) / Horse Power (HP) or part thereof for Low Tension (LT) supply and per Kilo Volt Ampere (KVA) of contracted demand for High Tension (HT) (1) (2) 1. Industrial Service twenty thousand rupees; 2. Commercial Service ten thousand rupees; 3. Agricultural Service two thousand rupees; 4. Other Services four thousand rupees; ____________________________________________________ Provided that the Appropriate Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, amend the rates specified in the Table above. (2) On payment of the sum of money in accordance with sub-section (1), any person in custody in connection with that offence shall be set at liberty and no proceedings shall be instituted or continued against such consumer or person in any criminal court. (3) The acceptance of the sum of money for compounding an offence in accordance with sub-section (1) by the Appropriate Government or an officer empowered in this behalf shall be deemed to amount to an acquittal within the meaning of section 300 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974). (4) The compounding of an offence under sub- section (1) shall be allowed only once for any person or consumer. The petitioners' case is that he was consuming electricity for domestic purposes. As per the table given aforesaid, the petitioners would be required to deposit a sum of 3 Rs. 4,000/- for the purposes of compounding the offence. The petitioners would be at liberty to produce the receipt before the Court concerned within a period of six months. In case such a deposit is made, the Court concerned is directed to pass proper orders forthwith compounding the offence as per the provisions of Section 152 of the Electricity Act, 2003. This application is disposed of with the aforesaid observations and direction. Sanjay ( Sheema Ali Khan, J.)