Manu Narang also used to visit Delhi and check the progress made.
374 of 1978.
Ramlal Narang having obtained special leave from this Court has filed Criminal Appeal No.
Ramlal Narang and Malik met Mehra and it was decided that Malik should file an application for temporary custody of the pillars and that Mehra should wield his influence over the Magistrate to help N. N. Malik to get such temporary custody.
Appeals by Special Leave from the Judgment and Orders dated 10 1 1978 and 14 9 1978 of the Delhi High Court in Criminal Misc.
70,000/ .
The companyspirators were different.
Thereupon, First Information Report No.
R.C. 4/76 was illegal as a case on the same facts was already pending before the Ambala Court and that the Delhi Court acted without jurisdiction in taking companynizance of the case pursuant to a report of police based upon such illegal investigation.
The charge sheet mentioned the three Narang brothers, Ramlal Narang, Manoharlal Narang and Om Parkash Narang, as the three accused persons sent up for trial and H. L. Mehra as a person number sent up for trial as he was already facing trial before the Special Magistrate, Ambala.
The two pillars returned by N. N. Malik were then got examined by experts and were found to be fakes.
Later, it came to light that the pillars returned by N. N. Malik were number the original pillars but fakes.
The Government of India filed an appeal to the House of Lords and on 24th March, 1977, the appeal was allowed.
That was done.
They discussed their stratagem with their family friend N. N. Malik, informing him that the pillars were worth a fortune.
373 of 1978 and Omi and Manu Narang have preferred Criminal Appeal No.
Between May 1976 and May 1977 several other things happened and the Narang brothers, the appellants in the two appeals, made their appearance on the scene.
R.C. 2 of 1971 in the Court of Special Magistrate, Ambala, against N. N. Malik and H. L. Mehra for alleged offences under Section 120 B read with Sections 406 and 420 Indian Penal Code.
A First Information Report R.C. 4/76 CIU A SPE was registered by the Superintendent of Police, CIU Antiquities, SPE CBI, New Delhi against Manohar Lal Narang and others, for alleged offences under Section 120 B Indian Penal Code read with Section 411 Indian Penal Code and Section 25 1 of the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972, On 26th June, 1976, N. Malik made and application before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Delhi, in case R.C. No.
3 119 SCI/79 The case ended in their acquittal on 16th July 1968.
The alleged object of the first companyspiracy was to obtain possession of the pillars from the Court by cheating and to misappropriate them.
Thereafter, on 19th July 1976, a charge sheet R.C. 4/1976 was filed in the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Delhi, for offences under Section 120 B Indian Penal Code read with Sections 420, 411 and 406 Indian Penal Code and Section 25 of the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972.
The application was supported by the reply filed by the Superintendent of Police, C.B.I. On 3rd July 1976, the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Delhi, granted pardon to N. N. Malik.
Later on, suspicion was created by the discovery of two fake pillars which were also attempted to be smuggled out of the companyntry.
Temporary custody of the pillars was obtained and they were removed to Delhi in a truck at the instance of the Narang brothers to a place in Defence Colony, New Delhi.
Malik was presented by the Narang brothers with a Fiat car, a revolving brass bed and a sum of Rs.
The investigating agency was number also aware of what Malik and Mehra had done with the pillars after they had obtained possession of the pillars from the Court and substituted and returned fake pillars to the Court.
It was also sought to be declared that the entire investigation in R.C. 4 of 1976 was illegal and the orders of the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate and the Additional Metropolitan Magistrate taking companynizance of R.C. 4 of 1976 were illegal.
The objects of the two companyspiracies were different.
On 20th July 1976, the Additional Metropolitan Magistrate issued process for the appearance of the three Narang brothers.
The First Information Report and the charge sheet were companycerned primarily with the offences of companyspiracy to cheat and to misappropriate companymitted by Malik and Mehra.
The learned Magistrate also issued warrants for the extradition of Omi Narang and Manu Narang who were in London.
The charge sheet recited, among other facts, that the Narang brothers had companye to know in or about the month of February 1978 about the invaluable nature of the pillars and devised a stratagem to get the custody of the pillars.
323 and 322/77 and Criminal Misc.
After the acquittal of Bali Ram Sharma and others, the pillars were handed over to the Lambardar of village Amin.
But, numbercharges were actually framed as the accused were number present in the Court.
On 21st June 1977, two applications were filed in the Delhi High Court under Section 482 Criminal Procedure Code, one by Ramlal Narang and the other on behalf of Omi Narang and Manu Narang who were still in England awaiting extradition.
It was also mentioned that H. L. Mehra was facing trial before the Special Magistrate, Ambala, for the offences companymitted by him and, therefore, he was number being sent up for trial in this case.
The pillars remained in the custody of N. N. Malik from Ist March 1968 to 27th May 1968, when N. N. Malik purported to return them to the Court of the Ilaqa Magistrate, Karnal.
1083, 1149 of 1978 in Special Misc.
373 374 of 1978.
Ram Lal Narang was detained first under the MISA from September 1974 till he was released under orders of the High Court, and later, under the COFEPOSA from 1st July 1975 till after the revocation of the internal Emergency in March 1977.
The original pillars were transported to Bombay by Manu Narang and smuggled out of the companyntry.
Malik and Mehra alone were stated to be the companyspirators in the first case, while the three Narang brothers were alleged to be the principal companyspirators in the second case.
At the instance of H. L. Mehra, the then Chief Judicial Magistrate, Karnal and a friend of N. N. Malik, the learned Ilaqa Magistrate gave custody of the two pillars to N. N. Malik on his executing a personal bond in a sum of Rs.
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION Criminal Appeal Nos.
A petition for the issue of Writ of Habeas Corpus Ad Subjiciendum was filed in the High Court of Justice, Queens Bench Division, London.
A.373 , A. K. Sen In Crl.
Extradition proceedings were initiated in Britain at the instance of the Government of India.
The Divisional Court directed the release of Omi Narang and Manu Narang.
They were of the Sunga period 2nd Century B.C. and their present estimated value in the International Art Treasures Market is said to be around five hundred thousand American dollars.
A first information report F.I.R. No.
The application mentioned Sections 411, 406 and 420 Indian Penal Code read with Section 120 B and Section 25 1 of the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act, 1972, as the offences involved.
During the pendency of the case one Narinder Nath Malik N. N. Malik filed an application before the Magistrate alleging that he was a research scholar and requesting that he might be given custody of the two pillars to enable him to make a detailed study.
Ram Jethmalani In Crl.
20,000/ .
Replicas of the pillars were made by Balkrishan Rawal and Natwarlal, two eminent sculptors of Delhi under the supervision of Ramlal Narang and Omi Narang.
The pillars were recovered on 2nd May 1967.
The charge sheet which followed the investigation was filed on 19th July 1976 in the Delhi Court.
R. Lalit and R. N. Sachthey for the Respondent.
On companypletion of investigation a charge sheet was filed on 3rd October 1967 in the Court of the Ilaqa Magistrate at Karnal, against one Bali Ram Sharma and two others.
On 17th May, 1976, the learned Special Magistrate, Ambala, passed an order directing the framing of charges against N. N. Malik and H. L. Mehra.
The charge sheet was filed on 30th December, 1972.
The alleged object of the second companyspiracy was the disposal of the stolen property by exporting the pillars to London.
RC.2/71 CIA SPE CBI was registered at Delhi against N. N. Malik and H. L. Mehra under Section 120 B read with Sections 406 and 420 Indian Penal Code.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by CHINNAPPA REDDY, J. On the intervening night of 31st March 1967 and Ist April 1967, two sandstone pillars of great antiquity, beauty and value were stolen from Suraj Kund temple, in Village Amin District Karnal, Haryana .
322/77.
A.374 and Harjinder Singh for the Appellants.
72 of 1967 was registered by the Police of Butana, District Karnal.
On 17th April, 1977, the Public Prosecutor filed an application under Section 494 Criminal Procedure Code for permission to withdraw the case against Malik and Mehra.
The applicants sought quashing of the orders of the learned Metropolitan Magistrate issuing process to them and warrants for the extradition of Omi Narang and Manu Narang.
The learned Magistrate also numbericed an application filed before him, after the companyclusion of arguments, informing him that the case in the Court at Ambala against Malik and Mehra had since been withdrawn on 16th May 1977.
The accused mentioned in the report were Manu Narang and Ramlal Narang.
It was further mentioned in the charge sheet that Manoharlal Narang and Omi Narang were in London and that proceedings for their extradition were under way.
The order was written by H. L. Mehra himself and signed by the Ilaqa Magistrate.
Meanwhile internal emergency was lifted in India in March 1977 and Ram Lal Narang was released.
The two genuine pillars which had been removed from Suraj Kund temple were traced and found in London in the warehouse of Messrs Spink Co. It was suspected that Manoharlal Narang and Ramlal Narang had engaged Balkishan Rawal and Nathubhai Rawal of Delhi to make three sets of fakes and had exported the genuine pillars to London.
It was further recited that Manu Narang was negotiating the sale of the pillars through some London brokers and the price expected to be fetched was approximately five hundred American dollars.
Shri Harjinder Singh, learned Counsel for the appellant in Criminal Appeal No.
They also paid for two pleasure trips made by Malik and his wife to Bombay.
It was also prayed that the proceedings before the Metropolitan Magistrate might be quashed.
Almost immediately he filed a petition before the Additional Metropolitan Magistrate to drop the proceedings against him, to cancel the extradition warrants and to discharge the accused.
Before the grant of pardon the companyfessional statement of N. N. Malik was got recorded by the Metropolitan Magistrate, Delhi.
Omi Narang and Manu Narang were finally extradited and brought to India on 27th July, 1977.
After reciting that the pillars had been taken from the Court by N. N. Malik and had been substituted by fake pillars, the First Information Report went on to recite that the genuine pillars, which were stolen from Suraj Kund temple as mentioned above were found to be in the possession and companytrol of Manohar Lal alias Manu Narang in London.
It may be mentioned here, that of the three Narang brothers, Om Prakash alias Omi Narang had been living in London since 1970, Manohar Lal alias Manu Narang had been similarly living in London since July 1974 and Ram Lal Narang alone had been living in India.
The case was transferred to the Court of the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate.
The Metropolitan Magistrate, Bow Street, London ordered the detention of Omi Narang and Manu Narang pending the issue of warrants by the Secretary of State under Section 5 of the Fugitive Offenders Act.
It is obvious that neither at the time when the First Information Report pertaining to the Ambala case was registered number at the time when the charge sheet was filed in the Ambala Court, were the Narang brothers known to be in the picture.
The petitions were admitted by the Delhi High Court on 22nd June, 1977, but ultimately dismissed on 10th January 1978, by a companymon judgment.
4/76 CIU A SPE, New Delhi, purporting to be under Section 306 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, praying that he might be granted pardon.
The grant of pardon to N. N. Malik was questioned.
After companypleting the investigation the C.B.I. filed a charge sheet No.
Fake pillars were substituted and returned by N. N. Malik to the Court.
