2025:KER:25237 CRL.MC NO. 5510 OF 2023 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM PRESENT THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE V.G.ARUN MONDAY, THE 24TH DAY OF MARCH 2025 / 3RD CHAITHRA, 1947 CRL.MC NO. 5510 OF 2023 PETITIONER: ROSE CHAND JOSHY AGED 48 YEARS ROSE CHAND JOSHY, S/O JOSEPH, KAVUMPURATHU HOUSE, KOTHAIKUNNU, THODUPUZHA, PIN - 685584 BY ADVS. JASMINE V.H. GILDA DAVIS(K/001134/2024) JOHIN JOHNSON(K/000645/2024) JIBI JOHNSON(K/000447/2024) RESPONDENTS: 1 STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KERALA, PIN - 682031 2 ASSISTANT ENGINEER ASSISTANT ENGINEER, ELECTRICAL SECTION, KSEB, MANJALLOR, VAZHAKULAM,, PIN - 686670 3 EXECUTIVE ENGINEER, EXECUTIVE ENGINEER, ELECTRICAL DIVISION, KSEB, MUVATTUPUZA, PIN - 686669 4 DEPUTY CHIEF ENGINEER 2025:KER:25237 CRL.MC NO. 5510 OF 2023 2 DEPUTY CHIEF ENGINEER, ELECTRICAL CIRCLE, PERUMBAVOOR, PIN - 683543 BY SR.PP.PUSHPALATHA M.K.; SC FOR KSEB ANILKUMAR THIS CRIMINAL MISC. CASE HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 24.03.2025, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING: 2025:KER:25237 CRL.MC NO. 5510 OF 2023 3 ORDER The petitioner is the accused in Crime No.545 of 2019 registered at the Vazhakulam Police Station for the offence punishable under Section 409 of IPC, now pending as CC.No.435 of 2022 on the files of the Judicial Magistrate of First Class-III, Muvattupuzha. The crime is registered on the allegation that, while working as the cashier of KSEB Section Office, Manjalloor, the petitioner committed criminal misappropriation by retaining the cash remitted by the customers from 01.01.2019 to 07.01.2019. 2. Learned counsel for the petitioner contends that, the allegations, even if accepted in their entirety, will only make out a case of dereliction of duty. It is submitted that the departmental proceedings based on the incident had culminated in Annexure-A12 order, imposing the petitioner with the penalty of barring of increments. 3. Learned Standing Counsel for the Kerala State Electricity Board Limited (KSEB) submits that, retention of the Board’s money without sufficient cause, even if it is only for a 2025:KER:25237 CRL.MC NO. 5510 OF 2023 4 day, amounts to misappropriation. 4. Even though I find some merit in the submission of the learned counsel for the petitioner that the intervening days between 01.01.2019 and 07.01.2019 were holidays and functioning of the bank was affected due to Hartal, those aspects are to be brought out in evidence. It will be inappropriate for this Court to decide the case based on mere assumptions and conjectures. The Crl.M.C is hence closed, without prejudice to the petitioner’s right to raise all contentions, including those raised in this Crl.M.C, before the trial court and directing the court below to consider those contentions with the seriousness it deserves. Sd/- V.G.ARUN JUDGE SPV 2025:KER:25237 CRL.MC NO. 5510 OF 2023 5 APPENDIX OF CRL.MC 5510/2023 PETITIONER’S ANNEXURES ANNEXURE -A1 TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 27/03/2017 ISSUED BY THE KSEB ANNEXUR-A2 TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 16-01- 2021 ISSUED BY THE KSEB ANNEXURE-A3 TRUE COPY OF THE DIRECTION DATED 11/1/2019, ISSUED BY THE SENIOR SUPERINTEND ANNEXURE-A3(1) TRUE COPY OF THE DIRECTION DATED 11/1/2019, ISSUED BY THE SENIOR SUPERINTEND ANNEXURE -A3(2) TRUE COPY OF THE DIRECTION DATED 11/1/2019, ISSUED BY THE SENIOR SUPERINTEND ANNEXURE -A3(3) TRUE COPY OF CHALLAN DATED 11-1-2019 ANNEXURE -A4 TRUE COPY OF THE SUSPENSION ORDER ISSUED BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT , DATED 10-1-2019 ANNEXURE -A5 TRUE COPY OF THE INTERNAL SPECIAL AUDIT REPORT, DATED 8/2/19, SUBMITTED BY THE AUDITOR ANNEXURE-A6 TRUE COPY OF THE RECEIPT DATED, 5/7/2019 EVIDENCING THE PAYMENT IN THE OFFICE OF 3RD RESPONDENT. ANNEXUREA-7 TRUE COPY OF THE COMPLAINT, DATED 6/7/2019, FILED BY THE 2ND RESPONDENT ANNEXURE-A8 TRUE COPY OF THE CLARIFICATION LETTER, ISSUED BY THE INVESTIGATING OFFICER ,DATED 6-7-2019 2025:KER:25237 CRL.MC NO. 5510 OF 2023 6 ANNEXURE -A8(1) TRUE COPY OF THE REPLY DATED,9/7/2019, GIVEN BY THE 2ND RESPONDENT ANNEXURE-A9 TRUE COPY OF THE FIR NO.545/2019, DATED 9/8/2019 ANNEXURE-A10 TRUE COPY OF 161 STATEMENT OF SENIOR SUPERINTEND DATED ,14-8-2019 ANNEXURE _A11 TRUE COPY OF FINAL REPORT DATED, 9-11-2019 ANNEXURE -A12 TRUE COPY OF ORDER DATED 2/6/2020, ISSUED BY THE 4TH RESPONDENT, RESPONDENTS’ ANNEXURES : NIL //TRUE COPY// PA TO JUDGE