Court No.3 Criminal Misc. Application No. 751 of 2001 (Old No.12157/1987) Rt. Rev. P. Prasad Rao …Petitioner Vs. 1. Sri Andrew Prakash 2. State of U.P. …Respondents. Hon’ble Irshad Hussain, J. None appear for the respondent No.1. Heard Sri Vinay Kumar learned counsel for the petitioner and learned A.G.A. for respondent No. 2 and perused the record. (2). This petition has been preferred for quashing of the criminal proceedings of criminal complaint case No. 2540/ 1986 Andrew Prakash Vs. Rt.Rev. P. Prasad Rao, pending in the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Dehradun. (4). From the perusal of the record it appear that on 7-11-1986 the learned C.J.M., Dehradun took cognizance against the accused-petitioner for the offence punishable under section 420 I.P.C. merely on the ground that the payment of the cheque which was issued to the complainant was stopped. The complainant was practicing Advocate and was engaged by the accused- petitioner in connection with some litigation. A cheque of Rs. 1000/- was given towards his fee but the payment of the same was got stopped by the accused- petitioner. The contention of the complainant was that he had been cheated by the act of the accused-petitioner in getting the payment of the cheque stopped. There is nothing to indicate in the order that when the Advocate was engaged as a counsel by the accused-petitioner and he was misled in regard to his fee etc. If some dispute arose regarding the payment of fee the question of cheating does not arise. If the payment of the cheque was stopped it was not a case of cheating and at the most the complainant Advocate could have sought recovery of his fee from the accused-petitioner. Considering this there was no prima facie case to proceed against the accused-petitioner for an offence under section 420 I.P.C. and the initiation of the criminal proceeding was nothing but abuse of process of the court. (5). The petition has merit and is to be allowed. The petition is allowed and the proceedings of criminal case No.2540/1986 pending in the court of C.J.M., Dehradun are hereby quashed. (Irshad Hussain, J.) Dated 27-9-2003 ISB