Thane, Jun 13 (PTI) A businessman was sentenced to one year imprisonment and fined Rs 20 lakh by a Thane court after four cheques worth Rs 10 lakh that he had issued bounced.
In his order of June 9, details of which were made available on Friday, the 11th Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate of Thane A D Margode also said businessman Nitin Tawade would face an additional six months in prison if he fails to pay the fine.
Tawade had issued four cheques to the minor complainant, who was represented by her father Santosh Palshikar.
Palshikar had given a loan of Rs 17 lakh to Tawade for his ice cream parlour business, of which Rs 3.05 lakh was repaid by the latter via NEFT, while four of six cheques of Rs 2.5 lakh got dishonoured.
The case against Tawade proceeded under Section 138 of Negotiable Instruments Act, which deals with cheque dishonour due to insufficiency of funds or account closure.
Magistrate Margode, in his ruling, upheld all five key components required for conviction under Section 138, comprising issuance of cheques for a legally enforceable debt, timely presentation, dishonour, legal notice, and non-payment within the stipulated period.
He ordered that the Rs 20 lakh fine be paid as compensation to the complainant within three months.