HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD ?Court No. - 83 Case :- APPLICATION U/S 482 No. - 28810 of 2019 Applicant :- [ENTITY] And 5 Ors Opposite Party :- State Of U.P. And Another Counsel for Applicant :- [ENTITY],[ENTITY] Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A. Hon'ble [ENTITY],J.
Heard Sri [ENTITY], learned counsel for the applicants and learned A.G.A. for the State.
This application has been filed for quashing the impugned summoning order dated 16.9.2017 passed by learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Maharajganj, as well as the entire proceedings of [CASE NUMBER], under [SECTION], [SECTION], [SECTION] and [SECTION] of [ACT], P.S. Paniyara, District Maharajganj, pending in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Maharajganj.
It has been argued by the learned counsel for the applicants that the impugned complaint has been filed making false and baseless allegations with intention to create pressure on respondent no.2, step son of applicant no.1. The impugned complaint has been filed, as the respondent no.2 was aggrieved with the fact that his father has sold property without giving him portion in conspiracy with the applicants. It was stated that entire family incuding four ladies and two minor children have been roped in the impugned complaint. It was also submitted that the matter is essentially of civil nature and no prima facie criminal offence is made out against the applicants.
Per contra, learned A.G.A. has submitted that from the perusal of the material on record, it cannot be said that no cognizable offence is made out, hence the impugned proceedings or impugned order is not liable to be quashed.
The legal position on the issue of quashing of criminal proceedings is well-settled that the jurisdiction to quash a complaint, FIR or a charge-sheet should be exercised sparingly and only in exceptional cases. However, where the allegations made in the FIR or the complaint and material on record even if taken at their face value and accepted in their entirety do not prima facie constitute any offence or make out a case against the accused, the charge-sheet may be quashed in exercise of inherent powers under [SECTION] of the [ACT] In well celebrated judgment reported in [PRECEDENT], Supreme Court has carved out certain guidelines, wherein FIR or proceedings may be quashed but cautioned that the power to quash FIR or proceedings should be exercised sparingly and that too in the rarest of rare cases.
In the case of [PRECEDENT], the Hon'ble Apex Court has held as under:
(1) The High Court ordinarily would not exercise its inherent jurisdiction to quash a criminal proceeding and, in particular, a First Information Report unless the allegations contained therein, even if given face value and taken to be correct in their entirety, disclosed no cognizable offence.
(2) For the said purpose, the Court, save and except in very exceptional circumstances, would not look to any document relied upon by the defence.
(3) Such a power should be exercised very sparingly. If the allegations made in the FIR disclose commission of an offence, the court shall not go beyond the same and pass an order in favour of the accused to hold absence of any mens rea or actus reus.
(4) If the allegation discloses a civil dispute, the same by itself may not be a ground to hold that the criminal proceedings should not be allowed to continue."
The said decision has also been followed by the Apex Court in the case of [PRECEDENT]. Thus, there is no controversy about the legal proposition that in case a prima facie case is made out, the proceedings cannot be quashed. Here it would also be pertinent to mention that questions of fact cannot be examined by this Court in proceedings under [SECTION] [ACT]
Keeping in view the above stated settled position of law, in the instant case perusal of complaint shows that there are allegations against the applicants that the step mother of complainant wants to grab the property of complainant and when the complainant objected, all the applicants have abused him and gave beatings with hand and fist. It was also alleged that applicants have assaulted the complainant with lathi and sticks. There are also allegations that they snatched Rs.5000 from the pocket of complainant. Perusal of record shows that applicants have been summoned after examination of the complainant, under [SECTION] [ACT] and examination of witnesses under [SECTION] [ACT] Considering the allegations against the applicants, it cannot be said that no prima facie case is made out against the applicants.
It is apparent from the complaint and material on record that a prima facie case is made out against the applicant/s. The case of the applicants does not fall in any of the category enumerated by the Apex Court through various judicial pronouncement for quashing of proceedings. It is well settled that at this stage, this Court has to eschew itself from embarking upon a roving enquiry into the last details of the case. It is also not advisable to adjudge whether the case shall ultimately end in submission of charge sheet and then eventually in conviction or not. Only a prima facie satisfaction of the court about the existence of sufficient ingredients constituting the offence is required in order to see whether the proceedings deserves quashing. In case of [PRECEDENT]; reported in [PRECEDENT], [PRECEDENT]; reported in [PRECEDENT] and [PRECEDENT]; reported in 2000 SCC (Cri) 615, the Apex Court clearly held that if a prima facie case is made out disclosing the ingredients of the offence, Court should not quash the complaint. The note of caution was reiterated that while considering such petitions the Courts should be very circumspect, conscious and careful. In [PRECEDENT] it has been held that probabilities of the prosecution version cannot be analysed at this stage. Likewise, the allegations of mala fides of the informant are of secondary importance.
In the instant matter, the submissions raised by learned counsel for the applicants call for determination on questions of fact which may be adequately adjudicated upon only by the trial court and even the submissions made on points of law can also be more appropriately gone into only by the trial court. Adjudication of questions of facts and appreciation of evidence or examining the reliability and credibility of the version, does not fall within the arena of jurisdiction under [SECTION] [ACT] In view of the material on record it can also not be held that the impugned criminal proceeding are manifestly attended with mala fide and maliciously instituted with an ulterior motive for wreaking vengeance on the accused and with a view to spite him due to private and personal grudge. Similarly no such illegality, perversity or any other substantial error could be pointed out in the impugned summoning order, so as to warrant any interference by this court in exercise of powers u/[SECTION] [ACT].
In view of the aforesaid, no case for quashing of impugned proceedings or impugned order is made out. Hence the prayer for quashing the impugned proceedings and impugned order is refused.
However, keeping in view the facts of the matter, it is directed that in case applicants appear and surrender before the court below and apply for bail within a period of one month from today, their bail application shall be considered and decided expeditiously in accordance with law. For a period of one month from today or till the applicants surrender before the court below, whichever is earlier, no coercive action shall be taken against the applicants.
With the aforesaid direction, the application is disposed of finally.
Order Date :- 25.9.2019 [ENTITY]