Rebuttable presumption in cheque dishonour cases upheld; acquittal sustained where accounts and liability figures did not match.

In a prosecution under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, the statutory presumptions under Sections 118 and 139 are rebuttable and do not remove the complainant's duty to plead the underlying debt. The accused was allowed to adduce additional evidence in appeal under Section 391 CrPC, and the record showed discrepancies between the cheque amount and the complainant's accounts, including inflated interest calculations. On that basis, the accused rebutted the presumption on a preponderance of probability. As the acquittal was not shown to be perverse or wholly unsustainable in law, the appellate court declined interference and upheld the acquittal.

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Issues: Whether the acquittal recorded in a prosecution under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 called for interference in appeal, and whether the accused had successfully rebutted the statutory presumption by showing that the cheque amount did not correspond to the legally due liability.

Analysis: The complainant relied on the presumptions under Sections 118 and 139 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, but the Court held that while these provisions relieve the complainant from proving the debt, they do not dispense with the requirement of pleading the debt. The accused was permitted to adduce additional evidence in appeal under Section 391 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, and the appellate record showed discrepancies between the cheque amount and the complainant's own accounts, including inflated interest calculations. The Court reiterated that the accused can rebut the statutory presumption on the touchstone of preponderance of probability, and that where two views are possible in an appeal against acquittal, interference is unwarranted unless the acquittal is shown to be perverse or wholly unsustainable in law.

Conclusion: The acquittal was upheld and no interference was warranted; the appeal failed.

Ratio Decidendi: In a prosecution under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, the statutory presumption is rebuttable by preponderance of probability, and an appellate court should not disturb an acquittal unless the finding is perverse or legally unsustainable.

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