HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO CRIMINAL PETITION No.1533 OF 2009 Dated : 19.08.2010 Between : ASR Anjaneyulu & another … Petitioners-A.1 & A.2 A n d The State of A.P. & another … Respondents HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO CRIMINAL PETITION No.1533 OF 2009 ORDER: This Criminal Petition under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure is filed by the petitioners-A.1 & A.2 seeking to quash the further proceedings in C.C.No.1368 of 2008 on the file of the III Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Nampally, Hyderabad, for the offence punishable under Sections 420 and 406 of Indian Penal Code. The private complaint filed under Sections 200 and 190 of the Code of the Criminal Procedure by the complainant reveals tha the complainant Company duly represented by its Director entered into an agreement dated 05.04.2000 with A.1 duly representing M/s.B.Malakondaiah & Company for construction of houses for cyclone affected victims in Orissa State. The complainant pre-signed few blank cheques and left them with one Penchala Reddy, who used to look after the project works. Subsequently, the said cheques along with certain papers, which were kept in a suit case, went to the hands of A.1, who filled up five cheques bearing No.902310, 902311, 902312, 902314 and 902315 and presented them in the bank and the same were dishonoured. On that A.1 filed four cases against the complainant for the offence punishable under Section 138 of NI Act. Having aggrieved by these acts of the accused, complainant filed the present complaint against A.1 and his wife A.2. Heard. From a reading of the complaint it is seen that the petitioner used the cheque of the complainant to discharge his liability to LIC of India and the said cheque was dishonoured. Admittedly, the LIC of India not filed any case under Section 138 of N.I. Act either against the petitioners or the respondent. Further, it is the case of the respondent that already cases for the offence punishable under Section 138 of N.I. Act are filed against him by the petitioner. In those cases, he was convicted and in the appeal also the conviction was confirmed. Further, the learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that even though the cheques were issued to LIC in the year 2003, the present complaint is filed before the Court after a lapse of 5 years i.e. in the year 2008. Even assuming the allegations leveled against the petitioners in the complaint to be true, by no stretch of imagination the ingredients of Sections 420 and 406 of Indian Penal Code are attracted. In view of the same, this Court is of the view that any continuation of criminal proceedings against the petitioners would amount to abuse of process of law. Hence, the Criminal Petition is allowed and the further proceedings in C.C.No.1368 of 2008 on the file of the III Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Nampally, Hyderabad, are hereby quashed. ________________________ JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO Dated : 19.08.2010 sur