As Supreme Court on Thursday refused to interfere with 2013 Allahabad High Court order sending one, Virendra Singh, to six months imprisonment, the convict now over 85 years of age will continue to be in jail for now.
Refusing to interfere with the January 30, 2013, high court order sentencing Virendra Singh to undergo six months jail coupled with a fine of Rs 2000, a vacation bench of Justice Aniruddha Bose and Justice Rajesh Bindal questioned the delay of ten years in approaching the top court against the 2013 high court order.
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At the outset of the hearing, the bench asked the lawyer for Virendra Singh, “Who much is the delay … you avoided arrest for more than 10 years”
“Not at this stage, sorry”, Justice Bose said as advocate for petitioner Virendra Singh said that he (Virendra Singh) was 90-year-old and he was living in Aligarh and was not aware of the High Court order due to communication gap on account of change in address. The advocate told the court that Virendra Singh was bed ridden as he was ailing from multiple ailments.
Seeking suspension of the sentence, the Virendra Singh had sought that his remaining sentence be substituted by a fine of the reasonable amount on the grounds of his health condition – suffering from lungs, kidney and asthma ailments – and hospitalised ever since he was taken into custody, 42 years have elapsed from the incident and his advanced age.
The matter relates to October 7, 1981, when a food inspector under the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act checked the sample of the milk being sold by him. Upon testing they were found to be adulterated and the fatty solids were 28 per cent less than standard and non-fatty solids were 12% less than the standard.
A court of Judicial Magistrate, Khurja by its September 29, 1984, order found him guilty of offence punishable under section 7/16 of Prevention of Food Adulteration Act. He was sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 2000 under section 16(1)(a)(i) of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act,1954 without compliance of section 13(2) of the PFA Act.
On appeal, Bulandshahar Sessions Court on July 14, 1987 affirmed the conviction and sentence awarded by the Khurja Judicial Magistrate.
However, on January 30, 2013, the Allahabad High Court, while dismissing the challenge to Sessions Court’s order, reduced the sentence to six months imprisonment with fine of Rs 2000.
Virendra Singh was arrested last month as he had not surrendered in pursuance to 2013High Court order. He was to surrender within 30 days of the High court judgment delivered in 2013.
