JUSTICE Brassington Reynolds yesterday ruled that the 1996 order by a magistrate, committing Harrilall Motilall and Seenarine Persaud for jury trial, was flawed.

Consequently, the indictment against the two men at the Demerara Assizes, for unlawful possession of arms and ammunition, was quashed as a nullity.

Justice Reynolds held that the case presented by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) was based on faulty proceedings by application of the maxim ex nihilo nihil fit (out of nothing cometh nothing).

The discharged accused were represented by lawyers, Mr. Vic Puran, Mr. Lance Ferreira and Ms. Mishka Puran.

State Prosecutor Judy Latchman was prosecuting Monday when the male Puran raised a preliminary point, arguing among other things, that the committing magistrate had no jurisdiction to conduct joint concurrent committal hearings in respect of two indictable charges.

He said the magistrate acted without statutory authority.

Latchman had countered that the April 7, 1998 committal was valid, as all statutory requirements were met.

In his decision, Justice Reynolds agreed that the procedure in the lower Court was bad.