Crl.Misc.M No.32408 of 2008 1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB & HARYANA, CHANDIGARH Crl. Misc. M No. 32408 of 2008 Date of Decision:May 19, 2009 Kanwaljit Singh etc. ...........Petitioners Versus State of Punjab etc. ..........Respondents Coram: Hon'ble Mrs. Justice Sabina Present: Mr.R.S.Rai, Senior Advocate with Mr.B.R.Rana, Advocate for the petitioners. Mr.Amandeep Singh Rai,Assistant Advocate General, Punjab Mr.J.S.Gharuan, Advocate for respondent No.2 ** Sabina, J. Petitioners have filed this petition under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure seeking quashing of FIR No. 75 dated 9.9.2009 under Sections 498-A with Section 406 (added subsequently) of the Indian Penal Code (`IPC' for short) registered at Police Station Amargarh (Annexure P1) on the basis of compromise . Learned counsel for the petitioners has submitted that now parties with the intervention of relatives and friends have arrived at a compromise. Crl.Misc.M No.32408 of 2008 2 As per the compromise, petitioner No.1 would pay Rs.4,25,000/- in all to the respondent No.2 . Rs. 50,000/- have been paid in cash to respondent No.2. Now a cheque dated 19.5.2009 of Rs. 1,75,000/- has been handed over to respondent No.2 and another cheque of Rs.2,00,000/- dated 8.12.2009 has been handed over to respondent No.2 which she would be able to encash after the divorce has been granted on the basis of mutual consent. Now, the parties will file petition under Section 13-B of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 seeking divorce by mutual consent. A copy of the compromise deed and a photocopy of the cheque have been placed on record. Respondent No.2 , who is present in person along with her counsel, has admitted the contents of the compromise and has stated that she has no objection, if the FIR in question is quashed. As per the Full Bench judgment of this Court in Kulwinder Singh and others vs. State of Punjab, 2007 (3) RCR (Criminal) 1052, High Court has power under Section 482 Cr.P.C. to allow the compounding of non-compoundable offence and quash the prosecution where the High Court felt that the same was required to prevent the abuse of the process of any Court or to otherwise secure the ends of justice. This power of quashing is not confined to matrimonial disputes alone. Hon'ble the Apex Court in the case of Nikhil Merchant vs. Central bureau of Investigation and another JT 2008 (9) SC 192 in para Nos. 23 and 24 has held as under:- “23. In the instant case, the disputes between the Company and the Bank have been set at rest on the basis of the compromise arrived at by them whereunder Crl.Misc.M No.32408 of 2008 3 the dues of the Bank have been cleared and the Bank does not appear to have any further claim against the Company. What, however, remains is the fact that certain documents were alleged to have been created by the appellant herein in order to avail of credit facilities beyond the limit to which the Company was entitled. The dispute involved herein has overtones of a civil dispute with certain criminal facets. The question which is required to be answered in this case is whether the power which independently lies with this court to quash the criminal proceedings pursuant to the compromise arrived at, should at all be exercised? 24.On an overall view of the facts as indicated hereinabove and keeping in mind the decision of this Court in B.S.Joshi's case (supra) and the compromise arrived at between the Company and the Bank as also clause 11 of the consent terms filed in the suit filled by the Bank, we are satisfied that this is a fit case where technicality should not be allowed to stand in the way in the quashing of the criminal proceedings, since, in our view, the continuance of the same after the compromise arrived at between the parties would be a futile exercise.” Since the parties have arrived at a compromise, in order to live in peace, no useful purpose would be served by proceeding further with the criminal proceedings. Accordingly, this petition is allowed. FIR No. 75 dated Crl.Misc.M No.32408 of 2008 4 9.9.2007 registered under Sections 498-A read with Section 406 (added subsequently) IPC at Police Station Amargarh and all consequential proceedings arising therefrom,are quashed . ( Sabina ) Judge May 19, 2009 arya