SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
Jeevanbose @ Gopi Kalassery
Vs.
State of Kerala
SLP (Crl.) No. 2244 of 2003
(Shivaraj V. Patil and D. M. Dharmadhikari JJ.)
ORDER
Delay condoned.
1. Leave granted.
2. At the hearing, the learned counsel for the parties submitted that the
proceedings were initiated under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act,
1881, by the respondent-sister against the petitioner-brother. On trial, the
petitioner was found guilty. He was convicted and sentenced to undergo
imprisonment for a period of one year. During the pendency of the proceedings
before this Court in these appeals, the brother and sister have settled the
dispute. The petitioner has already undergone the sentence for a period of one
month. In these circumstances, the learned counsel, on either side, submitted
that the sentence already undergone by the petitioner may be considered
sufficient, taking note of the settlement arrived at between the brother and
the sister and the order of sentence may be modified to that extent. The
learned counsel for the petitioner added that this Court in K.L. Kunjappan vs.
Rafeeque & Anr. 9) and Sivasankaran vs. State of Kerala & Anr.
4) has passed similar orders. Under these circumstances, we dispose of
the appeals by modifying the order of sentence to the period already undergone
by the petitioner.