"Breach of trust may be held to be a civil wrong but when mens-rea is involved, it gives rise to criminal liability also". Comment on this statement with supporting judicial pronouncements.

The essential elements of the offence of criminal breach of trust are: The accused must be entrusted with the property or with dominion over it, The person so entrusted must use that property, or; The accused must dishonestly use or dispose of that property or wilfully suffer any other person to do so in violation, of any direction of law prescribing the mode in which such trust is to be discharged, or; of any legal contract made touching the discharge of such trust. The Supreme Court of India in VR. Dalal v. Yugendra Naranji Thakkar, 2008 (15) SCC 625 , has held that the first ingredient of criminal breach of trust is entrustment and where it is missing, the same would not constitute a criminal breach of trust. Breach of trust may be held to be a civil wrong but when mens-rea is involved it gives rise to criminal liability also. In a judgment of Pratibha Rani v. Suraj Kumar, AIR 1985 SC 628 , the appellant alleged that her 'stridhan' property was entrusted to her in-laws which they dishonestly misappropriated for their own use. She made out a clear, specific and unambiguous case against in-laws. The accused were held guilty of this offence and she was held entitled to prove her case and no court would be justified in quashing her complaint.