THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO CRIMINAL PETITION No.1862 of 2008 ORDER: Petitioners/Accused approach this Court with a prayer to quash the proceedings initiated against them in C.C.No.257 of 2006 on the file of the Court of VI Additional Munsif Magistrate, Guntur, wherein they are facing trial for the offence punishable under Section 500 of IPC. Facts, in nutshell, are as follows: The defacto-complainant herein is the President of Thakkellapadu Co-operative House Building Society, Guntur District, whereas the petitioners are the members of the said Society. The petitioners herein along with two others gave a petition to the Divisional Cooperative Registrar, Guntur, stating that the complainant was misappropriating the funds of the Society and demanding Rs.50,000/- from them to get registered the house plots allotted in their favour. Pursuant thereto, a preliminary enquiry was conducted. On the basis of the findings of the preliminary enquiry, a detailed statutory enquiry was ordered. Subsequently, the report of the Enquiry Officer ultimately led in reporting the matter to the police. The police registered a case in Crime No.86 of 2005 of Pedakakani Police Station, Guntur, against the complainant for the offences punishable under Section 409 of IPC. After investigation, the charge sheet was filed before the concerned Court and the same was numbered as C.C.No.232 of 2005. Aggrieved by the petition filed by the petitioners to the Divisional Cooperative Registrar, Guntur, the complainant filed the present private complaint before the VI Additional Munsif Magistrate, Guntur, against the petitioners, stating that even though the Society has already registered plots in the names of the petitioners, the petitioners have deliberately and maliciously gave a petition to the Divisional Cooperative Registrar, Guntur, with a view to tarnish his reputation in the Society, and that the contents of the petition are per se defamatory and malicious in nature. Thereupon, the said private complaint was referred to the concerned Police Station. After conducting investigation, the police filed the present charge sheet against the petitioners, for the offence punishable under Section 500 IPC, and the same is taken cognizance by the learned Magistrate and numbered as C.C.No.257 of 2006. The main contention raised by the learned counsel for the petitioners is that in the petition/appeal filed by the petitioners before the Divisional Cooperative Registrar, Guntur, the allegation that the defacto-complainant demanded Rs.50,000/- from the petitioners is made in good faith. Learned counsel relied on Eighth Exception of Section 499 IPC, which reads as under: “Accusation preferred in good faith to authorized person - It is not defamation to prefer in good faith an accusation against any person to any of those who have lawful authority over that person with respect to the subject-matter of accusation.” The illustration given in the aforesaid exception relied on by the learned counsel for the petitioners shows that if in good faith, accusation is made against a person before a Magistrate or if a complaint against the servant/child is given to a master/father, it will not come under the category of defamation. Admittedly, in the present case, the petitioners preferred a petition/appeal before the competent authority. The intention of the petitioners in informing the authorities concerned about the defacto- complainant demanding amount from them is not to defame the defacto-complainant, but to get the reliefs in their favour. At no stretch of imagination, the contentions raised by the petitioners in the petition/appeal filed before the authorities concerned do not indicate that the petitioners are interested in defaming the defacto-complainant. Hence, this Court is of the view that no offence much less the offence alleged against the petitioners is made out by the defacto-complainant, and the proceedings against the petitioners in C.C.No.527 of 2006 on the file of the VI Additional Munsif Magistrate, Guntur, are liable to be quashed. Accordingly, this criminal petition is allowed and the proceedings against the petitioners in C.C.No.257 of 2006 on the file of the VI Additional Munsif Magistrate, Guntur, are hereby quashed. ____________________ JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO 17.03.2011 v v