Narayanan vs State Of Kerala on 10 July, 2009
The judicial pronouncements by the apex court in
Modi Cements Ltd. v. Kuchil Kumar Nandi ((1998) 3
SCC 249), M.M.T.C. Ltd. and another v. Medchl
Chemicals and Pharma (P) Ltd. and another ((2002) 1
SCC 234) and Geoplast Pvt. Ltd. v. Chico Ursula D'Souza
(2003 (2) KLT 16 (SC)), it is noticed, have not been brought
to the notice of the learned Judge who rendered the decision
in Chackochan T.K. v. P.P.Paul and another (2008 (4)
KHC 922), expressing the view that the complainant has to
plead and prove that the stop payment instruction was issued
to circumvent penal liability under Section 138 of the N.I.Act.
That view, with respect, run counter to the decisions of the
apex court, referred to above, which have laid down the
principle that the burden was on the accused when a cheque
issued by him got dishonoured on his stop payment instruction
that he had sufficient funds to clear the amount under the
instrument and the stop payment instruction was given for
other valid reasons.