Srinagar: The Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Srinagar on Thursday convicted a property dealer from Budgam in a cheque dishonour case and sentenced him to one year’s simple imprisonment besides imposing a fine of ₹1.44 crore.
CJM Ms Tabasum convicted Shafiq Ahmad Sheikh of Najan, Beerwah (Budgam) in a complaint filed by Mohammad Yaseen Mir under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.
According to the complaint, the accused, who had family relations with the complainant and was engaged in property dealings, had in 2018 assured him of arranging over five kanals of land at Dodpathri in Budgam district. Believing him, the complainant paid ₹72 lakh in instalments.
When the promised revenue documents were not provided, the complainant conducted inquiries and allegedly found that the accused had no authority over the land. The accused subsequently issued a cheque of ₹72 lakh towards discharge of liability, which was dishonoured by Ellaquai Dehati Bank, Lawaypora on February 18, 2021, with the remark “insufficient funds”.
During trial, the accused denied the allegations and claimed that a blank signed cheque had been misused. However, the court observed that once execution and signature on the cheque were admitted, statutory presumptions operated in favour of the complainant. The court held that the accused failed to rebut the presumptions and termed the defence of misuse of a blank cheque as an unsubstantiated assertion.
The court found that all essential ingredients of Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act — issuance of cheque, dishonour for insufficiency of funds, service of statutory notice and failure to pay within the prescribed period — stood proved.
Accordingly, the court sentenced the accused to one year of simple imprisonment and imposed a fine equivalent to double the cheque amount, ₹1.44 crore.
The accused was absent at the time of pronouncement of judgment. The court directed the concerned SHO to arrest him and lodge him in Central Jail Srinagar forthwith. It also issued a levy warrant to the District Collector Budgam for recovery of the fine amount through attachment and execution of his movable and immovable properties.
