Punjab & Haryana High Court Grants Probation to Man Convicted Under Punjab Excise Act Despite Minimum Sentence Provision

Case Name: Dalbir Singh v. State of Punjab
Date of Judgment: January 7, 2015
Citation: CRR No. 217 of 2005
Bench: Hon’ble Mr. Justice Naresh Kumar Sanghi

Held: The Punjab & Haryana High Court partly allowed a criminal revision petition filed by Dalbir Singh, convicted under Section 61(1)(c) of the Punjab Excise Act, 1914, and ordered his release on probation for two years despite the statute prescribing a minimum sentence of one year’s imprisonment. Justice Naresh Kumar Sanghi held that the benefit of probation can be extended even in cases carrying minimum punishment, relying on the Full Bench judgment in Joginder Singh v. State of Punjab (1980 CriLJ 1218) and the Single Bench ruling in Nishan Singh v. State of Punjab (CRR No. 2102 of 2012). The Court emphasized that provisions of Section 360 CrPC and the Probation of Offenders Act are mandatory in nature and can be invoked if circumstances justify reform rather than incarceration.

Summary: Dalbir Singh was convicted by the Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate, Ajnala, for operating a working still and possessing 50 kilograms of lahan and 180 millilitres of illicit liquor, and sentenced to one year of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of ₹5,000. His appeal was dismissed by the Additional Sessions Judge, Amritsar, on December 20, 2004. In revision before the High Court, the petitioner did not challenge his conviction but sought the benefit of probation.

Justice Sanghi noted that under the principle laid down by the Full Bench in Joginder Singh, even where a minimum sentence is prescribed, the court retains discretion to release a first-time offender on probation. The Court considered factors such as the petitioner being a first offender, the incident having occurred in 1999 (over fifteen years earlier), his good conduct on bail, limited recovery, and absence of repeated offences. It found that these circumstances justified a rehabilitative rather than punitive approach.

Decision: The High Court modified the sentence and ordered Dalbir Singh’s release on probation for a period of two years upon execution of bonds to the satisfaction of the trial court, subject to good behaviour and non-repetition of the offence. The fine imposed was converted into litigation expenses. The judgment reaffirmed that probationary relief under Section 360 CrPC and the Probation of Offenders Act is applicable even to offences carrying statutory minimum sentences when reformative justice outweighs deterrence.