STATE OF UTTAR PRADESH vs SABIR ALI AND ANR.

The Supreme Court held that under Section 15(1) of the Uttar Pradesh Private Forests Act, 1949, only Magistrates of the Second or Third Class have jurisdiction to try offences related to the Act, and a trial conducted by a First Class Magistrate is invalid. The Court emphasized that the specific provisions of the Act take precedence over the general powers conferred by the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, particularly Sections 28 and 29(1). Consequently, the conviction and sentence imposed by the First Class Magistrate were set aside, affirming the necessity of adhering to the jurisdictional limits established by the statute.