1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY NAGPUR BENCH, NAGPUR Criminal Application (APL) No. 46 of 2011 Rajesh Sambashiv Mahajan ..VERSUS.. State of Maharashtra, through P.S.O., P.S., Warora, Dist. Chandrapur Office Notes, Office Memoranda of Coram, Appearances, Courts orders or directions Court’s or Judge’s orders and Registrar’s orders. Mr. S.V.Sirpurkar, Advocate for the applicant. Mr. M.J.Khan, A.P.P. For Respondent no.1/State. CORAM : Prasanna B. Varale, J. DATED : 22 nd March , 2011 . 1. Heard Mr. S.V.Sirpurkar, learned Advocate for the applicant and Mr. M.J.Khan, learned APP for the State. 2. By the present application under Section 482 of Code of Criminal Procedure, the applicant is seeking quashment of First Information Report in Crime No. 170/2007 registered at Police Station, Warora, Dist. Yavatmal and Charge-sheet no. 81/2008 as well as Special Case No. 80/2008, pending before the Additional Sessions Judge, Warora against the applicant. 3. The brief facts of the case are that the applicant is an agriculturist by profession and involved in political activities in Warora town. A report was lodged by the complainant Sharad Jivtode stating therein that the wife of the complainant namely Kamal Jivtode had contested the elections of Chandrapur Zilla Madhyavarti Sahakari Bank. During the said elections, Kamal received threatening calls on her phone and she was disturbed because of those phone 2 calls. It was further stated in the report that on 25/5/2007, an information was received that the elder daughter of Sharad Jivtode, namely Ashwini was not available in the house and as such Sharad proceeded in search of Ashwini. In the meantime, he received a phone call from his younger daughter informing him that Kamal consumed poison and as such Sharad immediately took his wife Kamal to the Government hospital and within 15 to 20 minutes Kamal died. On the next day, a note in the handwriting of Kamal was found in which it was alleged that the applicant and other accused persons namely Sandeep, Rajubaba Mahajan, Munna Ekare and Pandurang Vaidya are responsible for her suicide as she was depressed because of the threats and blackmailing from these persons. 4. Mr. Sirpurkar, learned Advocate for the applicant has submitted that the applicant has been involved in the said crime on the basis of FIR lodged by the complainant Sharad Jivtode. He has further submitted that apart from vague allegations, there is no material collected by the investigating agency against the applicant. He also submitted that even bare perusal of FIR would show that the elections of Chandrapur Zilla Madhyavarti Sahakari Bank took place in the month of April, 2007, whereas Kamal committed suicide on 26/5/2007. The learned Advocate has submitted that there is considerable time gap in committing suicide by Kamal and the alleged political rivalry between her and the applicant on account of elections. The learned Advocate further submitted that the FIR reveals that the elder daughter of Kamal namely Ashwini left her house on the day of engagement and as such Kamal Jivtode was disturbed and was under the shock. He further submitted that as the elder daughter Ashwini eloped with one Sandeep Titare on 25/5/2007 and Sandeep was not a boy of choice of Kamal and 3 Sharad, Kamal was unable to bear the shock and committed suicide on 26/5/2007. The learned Advocate for the applicant has submitted that the probable cause of death of Kamal is 'unknown poisoning with cardio respiratory arrest' and the applicant was nowhere concerned with the death of Kamal. There is no overt act attributed to the applicant so as to attract the provisions of Section 107 of IPC against the applicant. The learned Advocate for the applicant has further submitted that there is no complaint on record to show that the husband of Kamal had lodged any report to the police authorities about the threats. According to the learned Advocate for the applicant, the prosecution machinery has utterly failed to make out any case against the applicant for the offence under Section 306 of I.P.C. and as such, this is a fit case for quashment of FIR as well as charge-sheet against the applicant. 5. The learned APP has opposed the application filing the reply. 6. Mr. Sirpurkar, learned Advocate for the applicant further submitted that the other co-accused in this Crime namely Parikshit @ Munna Ekare had approached this Court by filing Criminal Application No. 685/2008 for quashment of FIR and charge-sheet. He has invited my attention to the order passed by this court on this application, dated 11/8/2009. Perusal of the said order dated 11/8/2009 reveals that this Court on perusal of the material, observed thus - "9. I have, with the assistance of learned Advocates on both sides, perused the entire charge-sheet. Keeping the charge- sheet before the Court, it may at the most, go to show that present applicant had administered threats to said Kamal in connection with the said election that too one month prior to the day on which Kamal had committed suicide. Even if this act is said to have been committed by the applicant, certainly 4 there is no link between the said act and committing suicide by Kamal and no material is produced before the Court by the prosecution. In my opinion, after having considered the entire charge sheet from the angle which was placed before the Court by the learned Advocate for the applicant, I am inclined to observe that no overt act is attributed by the State to the applicant so as to say that the applicant had abetted commission of suicide as understood in Section 107 read with Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code. If this be so to call upon the applicant to face the trial is something which is not justifiable, and therefore, I am inclined to hold that the applicant had made out the case for quashing of the charge- sheet as well as quashing of F.I.R. and hence, I pass the following order : i) The First Information Report in Crime No. 170 of 2007 registered at Warora Police Station, District Chandrapur is quashed and set aside. ii) The charge-sheet bearing no. 81/2008 pending before the Additional Sessions Judge, Warora in Special Case No. 80/2008 is quashed and set aside. iii) Bail bonds of the applicant stand cancelled. iv) Rule is made absolute accordingly." 7. In my considered opinion, the state of circumstance, the material collected by the investigating agency in the form of charge- sheet against the present applicant is common as in the Criminal Application 685/2008 filed by the applicant Parikshit @ Munna Arun Ekre. This Court by considering the material had found that no overt act is attributed to the applicant Parikshit so as to say that the he had abetted commission of suicide as understood under Section 107 read with Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code and further observed that if this be so, to call upon the applicant to face the trial is something which is not justifiable and accordingly hold that the applicant has made out a case for quashing the charge-sheet as well as F.I.R. I see no reason to take any different view in the present application. 5 8. In the result, the application is allowed. i) The First Information Report in Crime No. 170 of 2007 registered at Warora Police Station, District Chandrapur is quashed and set aside in respect of the applicant-Rajesh Mahajan. ii) The charge-sheet bearing no. 81/2008 as well as Special Case No. 80/2008 pending before the Additional Sessions Judge, Warora are also quashed and set aside, in respect of the applicant- Rajesh Mahajan. 9. Criminal Application is disposed of. JUDGE Diwale