STATE OF ORISSA vs K.RAJESHWAR RAO

The Supreme Court held that under Section 16(1)(a)(i) and Section 7(1) of the Food Adulteration Act, it is not necessary for the accused to be the owner of the shop to be prosecuted for selling adulterated food. The essential element is the sale of adulterated food to the purchaser, including the Food Inspector, and the prosecution must establish that the sale occurred in compliance with the Act. The Court emphasized that the sanctioning authority only needs to determine if an offence was committed, and the accused can be acquitted if no valid sanction was granted. The Court imposed a fine of Rs. 500, considering the long duration since the offence occurred, thus not serving imprisonment.