The High Court of Manipur, in a significant ruling on the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, has held that the statutory presumption that a cheque was issued for a debt or liability under Section 139 cannot be invoked unless the complainant first establishes the existence of a legally recoverable debt. Upholding the acquittal of an accused in a cheque bounce case, the court clarified that a mere admission of a signature on a cheque by the accused is insufficient to attract the presumption.

The judgment was delivered by Justice A. Guneshwar Sharma in a criminal appeal filed by Shri Manoj Kumar Jain against the acquittal of Shri Mahendra Kumar Jain by the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Imphal West.

Background of the Case

The dispute arose from a failed land transaction between the appellant,

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