Crl. Misc.No.M 23754 of 2010 #1# IN THE HIGH COURT FOR THE STATES OF PUNJAB & HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH. Crl. Misc.No.M 23754 of 2010 Date of Decision:-27.10.2010 Kapil Lekhi. ......Petitioner. Versus State of Punjab & Anr. ......Respondents. CORAM:- HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE JASWANT SINGH. Present:- Mr. Vipul Dharmani, Advocate for the Petitioner. Mr. Gaurav Garg Dhuriwala, AAG Punjab. None for respondent no.2. *** JASWANT SINGH, J.(ORAL) Prayer under Section 482 Cr.PC is for quashing of order dated 5.7.2010(P3) whereby the accused-petitioner has been declared a proclaimed offender for absenting himself on 20.7.2009 in a complaint case bearing number 98/2 dated 28.8.2006 titled as Partap Singh Versus Kapil Lekhi pending in the court of JMIC, Ludhiana. Petitioner is facing trial in a complaint filed under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act since last four years. He was granted bail by the learned trial court on 14.12.2006. He was declared Crl. Misc.No.M 23754 of 2010 #2# as proclaimed offender vide order dated 5.7.2010. Learned State Counsel submits that after petitioner absented from the proceedings of the trial court non bailable warrants of arrest were issued to procure his presence on 22.7.2009, 16.12.2009 and 6.3.2010 respectively. Thereafter when the presence of the petitioner-accused was not procured through ordinary process proclamation proceedings were carried out by the trial court vide order dated 4.5.2010 for 8.6.2010 and after adopting due process petitioner- accused was declared as proclaimed offender on 5.7.2010. Due to the absence of the petitioner-accused the proceedings before the trial court were stalled for four years. In view of the aforesaid scenario, petitioner does not deserve any leniency to be exercised in his case by invoking power under Section 482 Cr.PC for quashing the aforesaid order declaring him proclaimed offender. Dismissed. ( JASWANT SINGH ) JUDGE 27th October, 2010 Vinay