IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA Cr.Misc. No.19285 of 2006 1. Durga Yadav ,Son of Late Ishwar Yadav 2. Shambhu Yadav, Son of Late Ishwar Yadav 3. Dillu Yadav, Son of Durga Yadav 4. Budhdeo Yadav @ Baudha Yadav, Son of Late Ram Prit Yadav All resident of Village Head Manpur Toli Tola, P.S. Buniyadganj, District –Gaya (Bihar) ---------------- Petitioners. Versus 1. The State of Bihar 2. Dharma Prakash Arya Son of Late Jawahar Ram, resident of Village Head Manpur Toli Tola, P.S. Buniyadganj, District-Gaya (Bihar) ------------------ Opp.Parties. ----------- For the petitioners : M/S. Krishna Pd Singh, Sr. Advocate ,and Sitangshu Prasad Mishra,Advocate For the State : Dr. Maya Nand Jha, A.P.P. For Opp.Party no.2 : M/S Shivnandan Prasad Singh, Ashok Kumar , and Usha Kumari No.I, Advocates. _______________ O R D E R Four of the five F.I.R. named accused of Buniyadganj P.S. Case no.63 of 2004 have prayed for the quashing of the entire criminal proceeding arising therefrom including the order dated 22.2.2006 passed therein by the learned Special Judge, SC & ST Act Cases , Gaya , whereby the discharge petition filed by the petitioners has been dismissed. The aforesaid case was registered under Section 447 I.P.C. and Section 3(1) (ix) of the Sheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (hereinafter referred to as “the SC & ST Act”) when the written report dated 28.9.2004 submitted to the D.I.G. of Police, Gaya, by one Dharm Prakash Arya, impleaded herein as Opp.Party no.2, was sent to the Police Station. According to the - 2 - informant he had been allotted 20 decimals of land appertaining to khata no.436, plot No.1279/600 in the year 1959-60 by the C.O. Manpur and was coming in peaceful possession over those lands for the past 43 years. It is alleged that he had kept bricks on the southern and northern side of his lands for constructing a boundary wall. It is further alleged that the five accused forcibly took possession of 4 decimals of his lands after threatening the informant with bombs and fire arms. It has also been alleged that the accused persons had lost Title Suit as also a proceeding under Section 144 Cr.P.C. It was stated that the informant desired to start a school on the said premises but the accused were fixing pegs and dumping cow-dung on the said lands. It was further alleged that as the informant belonged to the Scheduled Caste, the accused persons were intentionally harassing him and requested for appropriate action to be taken against the accused persons. After due investigation, the police submitted a chargesheet under the Penal Code and SC& ST Act referred to above. The submission on behalf of the petitioners is that no offence either under Section 447 I.P.C. or Section 3 (1) (ix) of the SC & ST Act is made out from the allegations made in the written report submitted by the informant and the Investigating Officer possessing a pre-meditated bent of mind had submitted chargesheet in the case. Section 3(1) (ix) of the SC & ST Act reads as follows: “gives, any false or frivolous information to any public servant and thereby causes such public servant to use his lawful power to the injury or - 3 - annoyance of a member of a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe.” A perusal of the aforesaid Section would show that for an offence thereunder, it is necessary that false or frivolous information is given to any public servant in order to cause such public servant to use his lawful power to cause injury or annoyance of a member of scheduled caste or scheduled tribe. But from the allegations as made in the written report, the informant does not reveal any instances of the petitioners having given any false or frivolous information to any public servant nor has any public servant used his lawful power to cause injury or annoyance to the informant. In my opinion, no offence under the provisions of SC & ST Act appears to have been made out against the petitioners. However, an offence under Section 447 I.P.C. does appear to have been made out against the petitioners, as they, notwithstanding decisions of the Title Suit as also the proceeding under Section 144 Cr.P.C. having gone against them , they had started fixing pegs and dumping cow- dung on the land of the informant. The other points raised by the learned counsel for the petitioners appear to be of academic interest and calls for no detailed discussion. Accordingly, whereas the cognizance taken by the impugned order under Section 447 I.P.C. is held to be lawful, the cognizance taken under the provisions of the SC & ST Act appears to be unwarranted , and as such, the same is quashed so far the petitioners are concerned. - 4 - In the result the application is allowed in part inasmuch as the cognizance taken under the provisions of the SC& ST Act is quashed whereas criminal proceeding shall continue in respect of Section 447 I.P.C. ( Abhijit Sinha, J ) Patna High Court,Patna Dated : the 6th May,2009 Nawal Kishore Singh/A.F.R.