Crl.M.No. M-35991 of 2011 -1- IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB & HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH Crl.M.No. M-35991 of 2011 (O&M) Date of decision : 29.11.2011 ... Gurtej Singh and others ................Petitioners vs. State of Punjab and another .................Respondents Coram: Hon'ble Mr. Justice K.C. Puri Present: Sh. A.K. Khunger, Advocate for the petitioners ... K.C. Puri, J. Challenge in this petition is the FIR No. 157 dated 15.10.2011 under Sections 420, 120-B IPC, registered at Police Station City Abohar. Briefly stated, complainant Gurmit Singh s/o Ajaib Singh moved an application to the S.P., P.S. Sadar, Abohar, against Gurtej Singh, Kulwinder Singh, Harjinder Singh sons of Joginder Singh and Ranjit Kaur wife of Joginder Singh son of Ujaggar Singh – present petitioners. It is alleged that complainant Gurmit Singh s/o Ajaib Singh r/o Village Bhagu Tehsil Gidder Baha, District Sri Muktsar Sahib, was doing the work of agriculture. He had entered into an agreement with Gurtej Singh, Kulwinder Singh, Harjinder Singh son Crl.M.No. M-35991 of 2011 -2- of Joginder Singh and Ranjit Kaur wife of Joginder Singh, residents of Korewala, Tehsil and District Moga for purchase of 28 acres of land situated in village Jodhpur at the rate of ` 13,55,000/- per acre. It is further alleged that on 10.3.2011 in the presence of the witnesses Jaswinder Singh s/o Chiranji Lal r/o Kotbhai and Gursahib Singh s/o Beant Singh r/o Kotbhai, the complainant paid ` 2 lac to Gurtej Singh and Kulwinder Singh as earnest money for the purchase of the land. Gurtej Singh told the complainant that they will bring jamabandi within a day or two and he will be called for execution of the agreement. Thereafter on repeated requests, they brought the jamabandi and fard at 4 P.M. and got the agreement executed on 22.3.2011 at Abohar and in the agreement it was written that ` 48 lacs shall be paid up to 24.3.2011 and the remaining amount of ` 70 lacs shall be paid upto 20.5.2011 and the remaining amount shall be paid at the time of registration of sale deed on 15.12.2011. On the said agreement to sell, Gurtej Singh, Kulwinder Singh who came present put their signatures. Jaswinder Singh and Gursahib Singh put their signatures being witnesses and complainant also signed the same as a purchaser. At the time of execution of the agreement, Harjinder Singh and Ranjit Kaur were not present and Gurtej Singh and Kulwinder Singh took the original agreement by saying that they will get the signatures of Harjinder Singh and Ranjit Kaur on the said agreement and the same shall be returned to the complainant. The complainant agreed with them and handed over the agreement to Gurtej Singh and Kulwinder Singh in the presence of the witnesses for getting the signatures of Harjinder Singh and Ranjit Kaur. Now, Crl.M.No. M-35991 of 2011 -3- all the above mentioned four persons in connivance with each other, have kept the agreement to sell with them and the same has not been returned to the complainant even on demand several time. When the complainant approached them alongwith Jaswinder Singh, the aforesaid persons told him clearly that they were to play fraud with him and the same has been played and the agreement shall not be returned. Thus the complaint was made that the aforementioned persons have played fraud of `2 lacs with the complainant in connivance with each other. Legal action may be taken against them. The remaining amount is ready with the complainant and according to the conditions of the agreement, land purchased by him be got delivered to him. According to the prosecution, the original agreement was recovered from Gurtej Singh vide memo dated 29.10.2011. Learned counsel for the petitioners has submitted that the liability is civil in nature and no criminal liability has occurred. The complainant could at the most recover the amount by filing a civil suit and no criminal liability is made out. I have carefully considered the said submission, but do not find any force in that submission. According to the allegation, the original agreement was taken away on the pretext of getting signatures of two other co-sharers, which was recovered from Gurtej Singh. The proceedings under Section 482 Cr.P.C. can be resorted to in case there is abuse of process of Court or the criminal proceedings have been initiated as a measure of counter blast. Prima facie, counsel for the petitioners could not make out a case for quashing. The case is Crl.M.No. M-35991 of 2011 -4- at the initial stage. The civil and criminal proceedings can continue together. It is yet to be determined during the course of trial, whether the intention of the petitioners was to cheat the complainant and no finding at this stage can be given. So, in view of the above discussion, no case for quashing the proceedings at this stage is made out. Consequently, the petition stands dismissed. ( K.C. Puri ) 29.11.2011 Judge chugh