Joint account cheque liability under Section 138: only the signatory can be prosecuted, not a non-signatory holder.

Criminal liability under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act attaches to the drawer and signatory of the cheque, not to a joint account holder who did not sign it. Where the complaint, notice and sworn statement showed that the cheque on a joint account was signed only by one account holder, Section 141 did not extend prosecution to the non-signatory merely because the account was joint. The criminal proceedings against that accused were liable to be quashed, while the prosecution against the signatory was left undisturbed.

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Issues: Whether a joint account holder who has not signed the cheque can be prosecuted under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881.

Analysis: The complaint, notice, and sworn statement showed that the cheque drawn on a joint account was signed only by one account holder. The governing principle is that prosecution under Section 138 lies against the drawer and signatory of the cheque, and a joint account holder who did not sign the cheque cannot be fastened with criminal liability merely because the account is joint. Section 141 does not extend that liability on these facts.

Conclusion: The non-signatory joint account holder could not be prosecuted under Section 138, and the criminal proceedings against that accused were liable to be quashed.

Final Conclusion: The challenge succeeded only to the extent that the proceedings against the non-signatory joint account holder were set aside, while the prosecution against the signatory was left undisturbed.

Ratio Decidendi: Under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, criminal liability attaches to the drawer and signatory of the cheque, and a joint account holder who has not signed the cheque cannot be prosecuted merely because the cheque was drawn on a joint account.

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