MUNICIPAL CORPORATION OF DELHI v. TEK CHAND BHATIA

(d) In the definition clause, the collocation of words filthy, rotten, decom posed a.n<l i:nsect-infested" which are adjectives qualifying the term 1an article 'Of food' show that it is not of the nature, substance and quality fit for human consumption. A comma after each of the first three words is significant. These qualifying adjectives cannot be read with the Jast portion of the definition i.e., the v.·ords "or is otherwise unfit for human consump~ion" which is quite separate and distinct from others. [916 D-E] (e) The word "otherwise" signifies unfitness for human consumption due If the last portion is meant to mean Something different, it to other ai.uses. becomes diJficult to understand how the word 'or' as used in the definition of 'adulterated' in s. L(i) (f) between "filthy, putrid, rotten, etc." and "otherwise unfit for human consumption" could have been intended to be used It would be more appropriate in the context to read it disjunc junctively. iive!y. [916 E-F] (f) The word "or" is normally disjunctive and "and" is normally conjunc tive, but at times they are read as vice versa. To carry out the intention of the legislature, it is occasionaly found necessary to read the conjunctions 'ot' and ••and" one for the. other. The substitution of conjunctions however, has been sometimes made without sufficient reasons and it has been doubt.ed whether so1ne of the cases of turning 'or' into 'and' and vice versa have not gone to the extreme limit of interpretation. [917 A·C] A B c D • Green v. Premier Glynrhonwy State Co. L.R. [1928] I K. B. 561 at 568; Mers~y Docks & Harbour Board v. Henderson L.R. [1888] 13 A.C. 603, referred to. E

#2. (a) ''arious categories of 'adulterated food' mentioned s. 2(i) (f) ·broadly fall into two kinds of adulteration; firstly where the constituent ele menUi mato the food obnoxious . to human health or the existence of the par secondly, -ticular composition. of it, itself makes the food wµere the adulteration is constituted by the fact that the prescribed standard has not bef:~n observed in selling what purports to be a food of that standard or quality. [917 D-E] 'adulterated' and (b) Mere proof of an article of food like decomposed or diseased meat or rotten fish or putrid fruits and vegetables by the condition of the articles should be !iufficient to attract the definition of "adulterated" contained s. 2(i) (f) :ind further proof of 'unfitness of the articles for human consump- tion' still is not necessary for bringing home the guilt. [917E·F] (c) Th'e decision in Kacheroo Mal's case is however distinguishable asmuch as there Was no evidence that the cashew nuts, which were insect infested to the extent of 21.9 per cent, were unfit' for hum3n consumption. In regard to ,cashew nuts there was, at the material time, no statutory provision prescribing any minimum standards of purity. Court to d1~cide upon the evidence in the same, whether the insect infestation found was of such nature and extent as to make it unfit for humall consump- tion. [917 F-HJ therefore, It was, F G H o( • t • i'· -j -J. • ... • 912 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1980] 1 S.C.R. A B c D (d) Asouming the test in Kacheroo Mal's case to be correct, and report of the Public Analyst to be just a piece of evidence which has to be evaluated by the .Court in the facts and circumstances of each particular case to reach a finding as to the unfitness or otherwise of the sample for human consumption, there is in the present case, the evidence of respondent's own witness Dr. B. D. Narang DW.1. samples or cashew nut! purchased from the respondent, which were found te> be in.sectwinfested to the extent of 20.6 per cent and 20.7 per cent are "adul terated" within the meaning of section 2'(i) (f). [918 A·D] In view of clear evidence, two of (e) Part IX of the Prevention of Food Adultemtion Rules, 1955 deals with th'e conditions of sale and licence. Rule 50 states that no person shall manu facture, sell, stock, distribute or exhibit for sale the article of food mentioned therein except under a licence. "Nuts" is one of the articles mentioned there- in. It is wide and enough to include cashew nuts. Originally the Rules did not prescribe the standards of quality or purity in relation- to dry-fruits. That lacuna has, however, now been removed by the insertion of Rule 48B. [920A·B}

#3. In the instant case (a) there is no proof that the samples were taken from tins bearing the manufacturer's label guaranteeing purity of goods, nor is there any such warranty in the invoice Ext DE3/ A. There is nothing to substantiate this fact, and even if it were so, it is of little consequence. [921 D-E]i (b) The word "good" merely contains a description of the goods. The weird "good'' is not warranty as to the quality. The respondent is, therefore, not protected under section 19(2) of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 read with r. 12A of the rules framed under the Act. [921E-F] E Ranganatha Reddiar v. The State of 'Kera/a [1970] 1 SCR 864; Andhra 1 Pradesh Grain & Se~d Merchants' Association v. Union of India [1971] SCR 166, distinguished. R •. G. Pamanani v. The State df Maharashtra [1975] 2 SCR 886, applied. F

#4. The provisions of Section 20AA inserted by Act 34 of 1976 interdicts the Court from applying the provisions of section 4 of the Probation of Offen ders Act, 1958 to a prosecution under the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954. [921GJ [Keeping in view of the provisions of Section 16 of POPA, 1954 giving the Court the discretion for special and adequate re360ns under proviso to sub section (1) not to pass a sentence of imprisonment and considering the agf' of respondent the Court sentenced the respondent to the period already undergone and to pay a fine of Rs. 2000/ .] CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Criminal Appeal No. 195 of 1973. From the Jndgment and Order dated 26·5-1972 of the Delhi High Court in Criminal Appeal No. 177 /71. V. S. Desai, B. P. Maheshwari, Suresh Sethi and B. Bhaduraj for the Appellant. G H MUNICIPAL CORPORATION v. T.· c. BHATIA (Sen, J.) 913 ._ "°')-

#0. P. Soni, S. N. Mehta, Miss Kamlesh and V. D. Chopra for the II. Respondent, The Judgment of the Court was delivered by SEN, J. In this appeal, on certificate, from a judgment of Delhi High Court, by which it acquitted the respondent of an offence punishable under s. 16(1) (a) of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954, for the alleged contravention of s. 7(1) questions arise, namely (1) whether even though the Public Analyst found in one of the reports, Ext. PE that a particular sample of cashew nuts purchased from the respondent's shop was 'insect-infest ed' to the extent of 20.6 per cent and that it contained living insects, that circumstance by itself was not sufficient to warrant a conviction, and (2) whether the respondent was protected by sub-s. (2) of s. 19 of the Act inasmuch as he had purchased / the cashew nuts in scaled tins from a dealer in cashew nuts under the invoice Ext. DW 3 /A, which contained a description of the goods as 'SW Best Bormia'. thereof, B· c·, in dry-fruits I The facts of the prosecution case are these. The respondent is a partner of the firm M/s. Narain Dass Tek Chand, Khari Baoli, Delhi. The firm i:; engaged in wholesale business including cashew nuts which it gets from different manufacturers. On August 1, 1968 three samples of cashew nuts were taken from its shop by E the two Food Inspectors, S. L. Mehra, P.W. 1 and H. K. Bhanot, P.W. 3 from three sealed tins supplied by Sri Venkateswara Cashews, Panruti. These samples were duly forwarded to the Public Analyst, Delhi who by his three reports dated August 3, 1968 in Form III, . Exts. PE, PE/1 and PE/2 found that all the three samples were 'inseclt-infested'. Of these, two were insect-infested to the extent P" of 20.6 and 20.7 per cent and the third to the extent of S.63 per cent. The Magistrate 1st Class, Delhi acquitted the respondent hold- ing (1) that the respondent was a sleeping partner residing at Kanpur,. and that there was nothing to show that he was incharge of and was. responsible for the conduct of the business which, was carried on at G, the shop of the firm at Khari Baoli, Delhi; (2) that alternatively, the respondent contained a invoice Ext. DW 3/ A produced by warranty which absolved him from liability, and (3) that the ratio of living insects to dead insects not having been given in the Public Analyst's report, there being no evidence to show that the cashew nuts in question were deleterious to health, and if so, how much harm- ful effect it would have upon the health of a person consuming them, 4-743 SCl/79 { 914 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1980] 1 S.C.R. A the mere fact of the cashew nuts being insect-infested was not suffi cient to bring home the charge. The Delhi High Court without going into the question as whether the respondent was protected under sub-s. (2) of s. 19, maintained the order of acquittal, holding that merely because an article of food is insect-infested, it cannot be treated as 'adulterated' within the meaning of s. 2(i) (f) of the Act unless it is further proved to be 'otherwise unfit for human consumption' within the meaning of the section following its decision in Dhanraj v. Municipal Corpora· the other tion of Delhi.(') question namely, whether the invoice Ext. DW, 3 /A was sufficient warranty in law as to the purity of the article of food sold. In that view, it did not touch upon , B c, D E ·F G The term 'adulterated' as defined in s. 2(i) (!) reads : "(f) if the article consists wholly or in part of any filthy, putrid, rotten, decomposed or diseased animal or vegetable substance or is insect-infested or is otherwise un fit for human consumption." In Dhanraj's case (snpra) the High Court construed sub-cl. (f) thus : "The word 'otherwise' in sub-clause (!) of cl. (1) of sec. 2 does suggest that all the adjectives used earlier refer to the quality of the article being unfit for human consump tion. To fall under that sub-clause an article of food must be unfit for human consumption because it consists wholly or in part of any fifthy, putrid, disgusting, rotten, decomposed or diseased animal or vegetable substance or because it insect-infested or on account of any other cause." It relates to a distinct and separate class altogether. We are of the opinion that the High Court was clearly wrong in its interpretation of s. 2(i) (!). On the plain language of the defini tion section, it is quite apparent that the words 'or is otherwise unfit for human consumption' are disjunctive of the rest of the words pre ceding them. seems to us that the last clause 'or is otherwise unfit for human con sumption' is residuary provision which would apply to a case not covered by or falling squarely within the clauses preceding it. If the phrase is to be read disjunctively the mere proof of the article of food being 'filthy, putrid, rotten, decomposed .... or insect-infested' would be per se sufficient to bring the case within the purview of the word It· (I) I.L.R. (1970) 2 Delhi 681. I ,<- ._ M1PUCIPAL CORPORATION v. T. c. BHATIA (Sen, J.) 915 'adulterated' as defined in sub-cl. (f) and it would not be necessary .in such a case to prove further that the article of food was unfit for human consumption. A It is, however, pointed out that the construction placed by High Court in Dhanraj's case upon s. 2 (i) (f) of the Act has been received with approval by this Court in Municipal Corporation of Delhi v. Kacheroo Mal.(') where it is observed that 'the construction placed by the High Court in Dhanraj's case is the correct exposition of .the law embodied in s. 2(i) (f)'. It is added for the sake of elucidation that the adjectiws which precede the phrase 'or is other indicate presumptive but not wise unfit for human consumption' absolute criteria as to the quality of the article of food. If we may say so with respect, we have reservations about the correctness of ~ decision, but it is not necessary to refer the case to a larger Bench. B c ' In Kacheroo Mal's case it is observed : "The phrase "or is otherwise unfit for human consump tion" ca:n be read conjunctively as well as disjunctively. If it is read conjunctively, that is, in association with what pre cedes it, sub-clause (f) with slight consequent rearrange ment and parenthesis would read like this : "If the article is unfit for human consumption on account of (a) its con sisting wholly or in part of any filthy, putrid, disgusting, . rotten, decomposed or diseased animal or vegetable subst insect-infested, (b) or on account of any ance or being other cause". sub-clause, proof of In this view of the unfitness of the article for human consumption' is a must for bringing the case within its purview. If the pharse is to be read disjunctively, the mere proof of the whole or any part of the article being "filthy, putrid, disgusting, rotten. . . . or insect-infested" would be con clusive to bring the case within the mischief of this sub clause, and it would not be necessary in such a case to prove further that the article was unfit for human consumption. We would prefer the first construction as it comports best with reason, commonsense, realities, the tenor of this provisio:n and the main purpose and scheme of the Act. The adjectives "filthy", "putrid", "disgusting", "decomposed", "rotten". . . . "insect-infested" refer to. the quality of the (l) [1976) 2 S.C.R. 1. D, E F G H · A ' B - C D E .. G II 916 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1980J 1 S.C.R. article and furnish the indicia for presuming the article to be unfit for human consumption. But the presumption may not be conclusive in all cases, irrespective of the character of the article, and the nature and extent of the vice affiicting it. This is particularly so, where an article is found to be 'insect- infested'." · · . ·"' ''·"' .... I • f With utmost respect, we are not able to share this view and would hold that the observations made in the judgment should be confined to the particular facts of that case. The decision in Kacheroo Mal's case (supra) was largely based on the circumstances that the siandard of quality and purity was not pres cribed in respect of cashew nuts. Now that r. 48-B of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Rules, 1955 has been framed, the decision in Kacheroo Mal's case (supra) is rendered inapplicable. In the definition clause, the collocation of words 'filthy, putrid', rotten, decomposed and insect-infested' which are adjectives qualify the nature, ing the term 'an article of food', show that it is not of substance and quality fit for human consumption. It will be noticed that there is a comma after each of the first three words. It should also be noted that these qualifying adjectives cannot be read into the last portion of the definition i.e., the words 'or is oth~se unfit for human consumption', which is quite separate and diStil\\lt from others. The word 'otherwise' signifies unfitness for human consumption due to other causes. H the last portion is meant to mean something different, it becomes difficult to understand how the word 'or' as used in the definition of 'adulterated' in s. 2(i} (f) between 'filthy, putrid, rotteu etc.' and 'otherwise unfit for human consumption' could have been intended to be used conjunctively. It would be more appropriate in the context to read it disjunctively. In Stroud's Judicial Dictionary, 3rd Edu., vol. 1, it is stated st p. 135 : "And" has generally a cumulative sense, requmng the together, and fulfilment of all the conditions that it joins herein it is the antithesis of OR. Sometimes, however, even in such a connection, it is, by force of a context, read as "or"." While dealing with the topic 'OR is read' as AND, and vice verm' Stroud says in vol. 3, at p. 2009 : "You wil! find it said in some' cases that 'or' means 'and'; but 'or' never does mean 'and'." MUNICIPAL CORPORATION v. T. {;, BHATIA (Sen, J.) 917 Similarly, in Maxwell on Interpretation of Statutes, 11th Edn., p. 229- 30, it has beon accepted that 'to carry out the intention of the legis lature, it is occasionally found necessary to read the conjunctions "or" and "and" one for the other'. The word 'or' is nonnally disjunctive and 'and' is normally conjunctive, but at times they are read as vice versa. As :Scrutton L.J. said in Green v. Premier Glynrhonwy Slate ·Co.('). 'you do sometimes read 'or' as 'and' in a statute ... But you do not do it unless you are oblized, because 'or' does not generally mean 'and' and 'and' does not generally mean 'or'. As Lord Halsbury L.C. obse1ved in Marsey Docks & Harbour Board v. Henderson(') the reading of 'or' as 'and' is not to be resorted to "unless some other part of the same statute or the clear intention of it requires that to be done". The substitution of conjunctions, however, has been some times made without sufficient reasons, and it has been doubted ' whether some of cases of turning 'or' into 'and' and vice versa have not gone to the extreme limit of interpretation. Various categories of 'adulterated food' mentioned in s. 2(i) (f) 'broadly fall into two kinds of adulteration; firstly, where the consti tuent elements make the food obnoxious to human health or ·existence of the particular composition of it, itself makes 'adulterated', and secondly, where the adulteration is constituted by the fact that the prescribed standard has not been observed in selling -what purports ·to be a food of that standard or quality. We really fail to comprehend why the mere proof of an article of food like decomposed or diseased meat or rotten fish or putrid fruits •and vegetables by the condition of the article itself should not be -sufficient to attract the definition of ·s. 2(i) (f) and further proof of 'unfitness of the article for human consumption' is still necessary for bringing home the guilt. 'adulterated' contained The decision in Kacheroo Mal's case is, however, distinguishable inasmuch as there was in that case no evidence that the cashew nuts, which were insect-infested to the extent of 21.9 per cent. were unfit for human consumption. In regard to casew nuts there was, at the material time, no statu It is, · tory provision prescribing any minimum standards of purity. 'therefore, for the Court to decide upon the evidence the case, ·whether the insect infestation found was of such nature and extent as :to make it unfit for human consumption. Assuming •(I) L.R. [1928] I K.B. 561 at p. 568. ~2J L.R. [1888] !3 A.C. 603. A B c D E F G B 918 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1980] 1 S.C.R:. Kacheroo Mars case to be correct, and the report of the Public Analyst to be just a piece of evidence which has to be evaluated by the Court in the facts and circumstances of each particular case reach a finding as to the unfitness or otherwise of the sample for human consumption, there is in the present case such evidence. Dr. B. D. Narang, DW 1, examined by the respondent, is an expert on subject, being a member of the Q:ntral Committee of Food Standards besides holding Ph. D. degree in Chemistry from the University of Texas. He unequivocally states that although in regard to cashew nuts, there was at that time no statutory provision prescribing any minimum standard of purity, the Committee had reco=ended allow a 10 per cent insect infestation as it was of the view that this much infestation should not be taken as an act of adulteration since this clear it was not harmful to human consumption. In view of evidence, two of the samples of cashew nuts purchased from respondent, which were found to be insect-infested to the extent of 20.6 and 20.7 per cent, must be held to be 'adulterated' within the mean- ing of s. 2(i) (f). There is no reason for us not to act upon the testi mony of Dr. Narang, who is. the respondent's own witness. That takes us to the next ground namely whether the respondent having sold cashev.; nuts from sealed tins purchased from the supplier Sri Venkateswara Cashews, Panruti under the invoice Ext. DW 3/A bearing the description that they were 'SW Best Borma' cashew nuts, was protected under s. 19 (2) of the Act which reads : "19. (2) A vendor shall not be deemed to have commit ted an offence pertaining to the sale of any adulterated or misbranded article of food if he proves- ( a) that he purchased the article of food- (i) in a case where a licence is prescribed for the sale thereof, from a duly licensed manufacturer, distri butor or dealer; (ii) in any other case, from any manufacturer, distributor or dealer, ' ~. B .. 8 . D E F - G with a written warranty in the prescribed form; and (a) that the article of food while in his possession was pro perly stored and that he sold it in the same state as he purchased it." H There can be no doubt that M/s. Narain Dass Tek Chand had purchased the cashew nuts in question from Sri Venkateswara Cashews. Ramesh Chand, DW 3, manager of the firm states that the goods are purchased and sold by the firm in wholesale at its shop at Kbari 1( MUNICIPAL CORPORATION v. T. c. BHATIA (Sen, l.) 919 Baoli, Delhi. According to this witness, all the three partners of firm reside at Kanpur. They come to Delhi in a month or scrutinising the accounts. He states that the cashew nuts were pur- chased under the invoice Ext. DW 3 /A and they were of 'SW' mark. We are left to gm!ss what tlr~ letters 'SW or 'SW Best Borma' signify. It is, however, strenuously urged that the invoice describes cashew nuts to be 'SW Best Borma' and this amounts to a warranty as to quality. Strong reliance is placed on the decision of this Court in Ranganatha Reddiar v. The State of Kerala(') and Andhra Pradesh Grain & Seed Merchants' Association v. Union of India(') contention that if an article of food is sold in the same condition which it was purchased from the manufacturer or dealer, the vendor i.e., the retailer, like the respondent will not lose the protection of sub-s. (2) of s. 19, particularly when it is certified to be of good quality. We are, afraid we cannot appreciate this line of reasoning. The two decisions in Ranganatha Raddiar's case and in A11dim1 Pradesh Grain & Seed Merchants' case are clearly distinguishable. former case, the cash memo contained the words 'quality is up to the mark' which meant that the quality of the article supplied· was up to the standard required by the Act and the vendee. It was observed : In "It must be remembered that it is not a document drafted by a solicitor; it is a document nsing language of a tradesman. Any tradesman, when he is assured qu.ality of the article is up to the mark will readily conclude that he is being assured that the article is not adulterated." In the latter case, it was a branded article of food, and it was said : "If the article of food is sold in the same condition in which it was purchased from a licensed manufacturer or dealer, or was purchased with a warranty, the vendor will not lose the protection of sub-s. (2) of s. 19 merely because he opened the container. If the vendor has obtained article from a licensed manufacturer, distributor or dealer or from a manufacturer, distributor or dealer with a· warranty, he is protected, provided he has properly stored the article and sells it ii) the same state as he purchased the article, even if it turns out that the article was adulterated or misbranded." •• In the absence of any evidence that the respondent had purchased the cashew nuts under warranty, these authorities are of no avail. (!) [1970] l S.C.R. 864. (2) [1971) 1 S.C.R. 166. A' B C' I> E. l p r G B •• . -c ·o 920 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1980] 1 S.C.R. Part IX of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Rules 1955 deals with the conditions of sale and licence. Rule 50 states that no person shall manufacture, sell, stock, distribute or exhibit for sale the articles of food mentioned therein except under a liD-'"11C'~. 'Nuts' is one of the It is wide enough to include cashew nuts. articles mentioned therein. Originally the rules did not prescribe the standards of quality or purity in relation to dry-fruits. That lacuna has, however, now been removad by the insertion of r. 48-B, which is in these terms : "48-B. Sale of insect-damaged dry fruits and nuts.-The dry fruits and nuts like raisins, currents, figs, cashewnuts, apricots, almonds may contain not more than 5 per cent of insect-damaged fruits and nuts, by count." Rule 12A which deals with warranty reads thus : "Rule 12-A. Warranty-Every trader selling an article of food to a vendor shall, if the vendor so requires, deliver to the vendor a warranty in Form VI-A : Provided that no warranty in such form shall be neces sary if the label on the article of food or the cash memo delivered by the trader to the vendor in article contains a warranty certifying that the food contained in the package or container or mentioned in the cash memo is the same in nature, substance and quality as demanded by the vendor. respect of Explanation : The term 'trader' shall mean an importer, manufacturer, wholesale dealer or an authorised agent of such importer manufacturer or whoksale dealer." Admittedly, there was no warranty in the prescribed form instant case. The testimony of the two Food Inspectors, S. L. Mehra, PW 1, and H. K. Bhanot, PW 3, no doubt show that they bought the samples out of the sealed tins, but there is nothing to show that they were tins bearing the manufacturer's label guaranteeing purity. .. G Tu R. G. Pamanani v. The State of Maharashtra(') this Court after distinguishing Andh~a Pradesh Grain & Seed Mercha1Its' case observed: "The reason why a warranty is required in both the cases that if contemplated in section 19(2) (a) (i) and (ii) is warranty were not to be insisted upon by the statute and if If vendor would be permitted to have a defence merely by stat- • (1) [1975) 2 S.C.R. 886. • MUNICIPAL CORPORATION v. T. c. BHATIA (Sen, !.) 921 from a licensed ,fng that the vendor purchased the goods ·manufacturer, distributor or dealer adulterated or misbranded .articles would be marketed by manufacturers, distributors, .dealers as well as purchasers from them with impunity. That is why a written warranty is enjoined in both the cases section 19(2)(a)(i) and (ii). Section 19(2j(a) of the Act will provide a defence where a vendor purchase; articles of food from a licensed manufacturer, distributor or dealer with a written warranty in the prescribed form. Again, a vendor 'shall not be deemed to have committed an offence pertaining to the sale of any adulterated or misbranded article of food if he proves that he purchased the article from any ·manufacturer, distributor or dealer with a written warranty in the prescribed form. These salutary provisions are designed for the health of the nation. Therefore, ·enjoined. No laxity (Emphasis supplied). should be permitted." a warranty That, in our opinion, really concludes the matter. In the instant ·case, there is no proof that the samples were taken from tins bearing the manufacturer's label guaranteeing purity of goods, nor is any such warranty in the invoice Ext. DW 3 /A. It is, however, urged that the tins bore the imprint "Good''. There is nothing to sub stantiate this fact, and even if it were so, it is of little consequence. The word 'Good' on which great emphasis is placed merely contains a description of the goods. At the most it amounts 'puffing of ·goods'. The word 'Good' is not a warranty as to quality. The respon ·dent is, therefore, not protected under s. 19(2) of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 read with r. 12A of the rules framed •under the Act. The result, therefore, is that the appeal succeeds and is allowed. The order of acquittal of the respondent is set aside, and he is con ·victed for having committed an offence punishable under s. 16(1) (a) -read with s. 7(1) of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954. The contention that the respondent released on ·probation of good conduct under s, 4 of the Probation of Offenders Act, 1958 cannot be accepted. The provisions of s. 20 AA inserted 'by Act 34 of 1976 intenlicts the Court from applying the proyisions of that Act to a prosecution under the Prevention of Food Adultera tion Act, 1954. should be While we agree that adulteration of an article of food is a serious anti-social offence which must be visited with exemplary puAfshment, A II c D E G B • \'. 922 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1980] 1 S.C.B. A • c it will be rather harsh to pass a sentence of imprisonment in the facts and circumstances of this case. Under s. 16 of the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954, as in force at the material .time, the Court had the discretion for special and adequate reasons under proviso to sub-s. ( 1) not to pass a sentence of imprisonment. In the instant case, the respondent is a man aged 75 years. The offence was committed on August 1, 1968 i.e., more than eleven years ago. The order of acquit tal was based on the decision of the Delhi High Court in DhanraJ's case. The samples were taken from sealed tins. These are all mitigating circumstances. We accordingly refrain .from passing' a substantive sentence of imprisonment and instead sentence the respondent to the period already undergone and to pay a fine of Rs. 2000 /- or default to undergo rigorous imprisonment for a period of months. V.D.K. Appeal allowed.