1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY APPELLATE SIDE CRIMINAL WRIT PETITION NO.724 OF 2009 Mr. Lalji Devraj Shah & Anr. .... Petitioners Vs. Mrs. Kavita Shah & Ors. .... Respondents WITH CRIMINAL WRIT PETITION NO.1017 OF 2009 Dimple Anthony Carvalho .... Petitioner Vs. Mrs. Kavita Shah & Ors. .... Respondents Shri H.H. Ponda with Ms Trupti Kapadia i/b M/s. Joy Legal Consultants for the Petitioners in both petitions. Shri Anand Grover i/b Shri Vijay Hiramath & Shri Prakash Mahadik for Respondent No.1 in both petitions. Ms U.V. Kejariwal, APP, for the State in both Petitions. Ms P.H. Kantharia & Ms Heena Shah for the Union of India. 2 CORAM: BILAL NAZKI & A.R. JOSHI, JJ. RESERVED ON : JULY 22, 2009 PRONOUNCED ON: SEPTEMBER 15, 2009 ORDER (Per Bilal Nazki, J.): 1. These two petitions have been filed by three persons who are arrayed as accused in FIR No.243 of 2008, registered with the Cuffe Parade Police Station, Mumbai. While Criminal Writ Petition No.724 of 2009 is filed by one Lalji Devraj Shah and his wife, Criminal Writ Petition No.1017 of 2009 is filed by one Dimple Anthony Carvalho. The petitioners contend that the complaint has been filed by respondent No.1 with mala fide motive of roping in all the family members irrespective of the fact whether they have committed any offence or not. 2. We have heard the learned counsel appearing for the respective parties. The learned counsel appearing for the petitioners has submitted that from bare perusal of the complaint it will be crystal clear that there is not even an allegation against the present petitioners which would constitute an offence, 3 much less a cognizable offence. We have gone through the complaint. It appears that there are disputes between respondent No.1 and her husband. The petitioners in Criminal Writ Petition No.724 of 2009 are the in-laws of respondent No.1. The complaint states that while the complainant was working as a Housekeeping Manager at Dubai Marine Hotel, she got acquainted with Shri Paresh Lal Shah. This acquaintance turned into love and subsequently resulted in marriage, with the consent of the families of both. The marriage took place in Bangalore and one month thereafter, the complainant and her husband went to Dubai. She resumed her job at Dubai Marine Hotel and her husband was doing his business at Bharaja Trading at Dubai. In 2000, her husband appointed a lady named Ms Dimple Anthony Carvalho, who is the petitioner in Criminal Writ Petition No.1017 of 2009, in his office. In April, 2001 she came to stay with them. At that time the complainant told her husband not to allow Dimple to stay with them but he did not agree. At that time there was no illicit relationship between them but her husband did all things according to the advise of Dimple. All the 4 allegations in this connection are against the husband. The allegations against the mother- in-law and the father-in-law in the complaint read thus: "After such conversations on the phone, on returning he used to severely beat me in front of my son, my mother-in-law Mrs. Dhanvantlal Shah, aged 70 years, father-in-law - Mr. Lal Shah aged - 87 years, residing at the above mentioned address. In spite of this my mother-in-law and father-in-law did not stop him and make him understand. As a result he used to physically abuse and beat me and would have intercourse with me like a wild man and I was helpless before him as I had no one to help abroad." The further allegations against the in-laws read thus: "On 16th April, 2007, when I asked my husband for my and my sons' passport, he punched me on my nose, and my nose started bleeding. At that time his mother and father were also present. As I was going to a Doctor for treatment, my husband threatened me that "I will cancel you Visa if you inform the police or the doctor. When I returned after visiting the doctor, I found that the blood on the floor had been wiped off and my clothes had been 5 thrown out of the house. So, I picked up my clothes and kept them inside the house again." The further allegations against the in-laws are thus: "On 23rd November, 2007 while I was sleeping at around 3 a.m. my husband suddenly started biting me, because of which I woke up and started resisting him. But still he continued biting me all over my body. At that time, I started shouting for my mother-in-law Mrs. Dhanvanti Lal Shah and father-in-law Lal Shah and my son Master Karan to call the police, but I didn't receive any help." 3. As regards allegations in the complaint against the petitioner in Criminal Writ Petition No.1017 of 2009 are concerned, the same read thus: "Thereafter, in March , 2006 I was harassed by sending dirty SMS's on my mobile. So I asked my husband Mr. Paresh Shah and his secretary Mrs. Dimple about the dirty sms's who laughed at me and termed me as mad and as a result I kept quiet." The further allegations in the complaint against the said Dimple Carvalho read thus: 6 "On 29.9.2006, while we were in Dubai as my husband did not return home, even after 3 a.m. I started searching for him. I saw my husband's car standing outside our old home, so I rang the door bell, after which, Secretary Mrs. Dimple's sister opened the door. At that time she said that my husband was not there. I replied that as my husband's car was parked outside, it meant that he was inside. So, I entered the house and rang the doorbell of Dimple's bedroom. As the door was not opened, I called my husband's sponsor Mr. Mansoor, who told me to wait there as he was arriving there. As I was waiting there, Dimple came out of her bedroom and started using bad words against me and said that my husband was not in her house. On searching, I found my husband hiding inside a cupboard." The further allegation wherein a reference is made to the said Dimple reads thus: "My husband Mr. Paresh Lal Shah, after one year of marriage i.e. from 1997 to 24th July, 2008 had been physically and mentally harassing me and also beating me and also harassing me with the help of his girlfriend Mrs. Dimple Carvalho." There are no other allegations against any of 7 the petitioners in the complaint. 4. A statement in the second last para of the complaint and which is also very relevant for deciding the petitions, reads thus: "This Complaint is for taking legal action against my husband for the above said reasons." 5. For accusing husband or relatives of husband of having committed an offence under Section 498-A of the IPC, there should be cruelty by the husband or the relatives of the husband of a woman and there should be an element of demand of property or valuable security on account of dowry. The petitioner in Criminal Writ Petition No.1017 of 2009 is not even a relative of the husband of the complainant. Besides, only making allegations of the above nature, the complaint does not even disclose that the complainant was treated with cruelty on account of demand of dowry. Therefore, applying the principle laid down in State of Haryana and Ors. v. Ch. Bhajan Lal and others, reported in AIR 1992 SC 604, we feel that continuation of investigation in FIR No.243 of 2008, registered with the Cuffe Parade Police Station, Mumbai would be an 8 abuse of process of law and, therefore, the FIR as against the petitioners in both the petitions deserves to be quashed and is accordingly quashed. The petitions accordingly stand disposed of. Sd/- BILAL NAZKI, J. Sd/- A.R. JOSHI, J.