Double jeopardy under Section 403 applies only after a valid acquittal by a competent court; a jurisdictionally void acquittal has no effect.

Section 403 of the Code of Criminal Procedure bars a subsequent trial only where the earlier proceeding ended in a valid conviction or acquittal by a court of competent jurisdiction. An order of acquittal made by a court that itself considered it lacked jurisdiction to take cognizance has no legal effect for that purpose and is a nullity. Article 20 double jeopardy protection does not extend to such an incompetent proceeding. The fact that charge was framed and evidence recorded did not cure the jurisdictional defect, so the later trial and conviction were not barred.

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Issues: Whether an earlier order purporting to acquit the appellant, made by a court that considered itself incompetent to take cognizance of the offence, barred a later trial and conviction for the same offence under section 403 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

Analysis: Section 403 bars a second trial only where the accused has once been tried by a court of competent jurisdiction and convicted or acquitted, and the earlier adjudication remains in force. The protection against double jeopardy, reflected in article 20 of the Constitution, does not apply where the earlier proceeding was before a court that was itself of the view that it lacked jurisdiction to proceed. A court that considers itself incompetent to take cognizance cannot lawfully render an acquittal with the effect contemplated by section 403, and an order made in such circumstances is a nullity. The fact that charge had been framed and evidence recorded did not transform the earlier proceeding into a valid trial, because competence to initiate and continue the proceeding was absent on the court's own view.

Conclusion: The earlier order did not amount to a valid acquittal within section 403, so the subsequent trial and conviction were not barred.

Ratio Decidendi: The bar against a subsequent trial applies only when the earlier proceeding ended in a valid acquittal or conviction by a court that was competent to try the case and to make that order; an acquittal made by a court that believed it lacked jurisdiction is without legal effect for section 403.

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