IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH Criminal Misc. No.M-8001 of 2009 DATE OF DECISION :July 30, 2009 Rajwinder Singh and others ...Petitioners Vs. State of Punjab and another ...Respondents CORAM: HON’BLE MR.JUSTICE AUGUSTINE GEORGE MASIH Present : Mr.S.S.Chauhan, Advocate for the petitioners Mr.Aman Deep Singh Rai, AAG, Punjab Mr.G.P.S.Bal, Advocate for respondents No.2 and 3. AUGUSTINE GEORGE MASIH,J. (Oral) The present petition has been filed for quashing of F.I.R. No. 169 dated 15.07.2008 (Annexure P-I) which was registered under Sections 323,324 and 34 IPC at Police Station Sadar Hoshiarpur subsequently Section 326 IPC was added. Counsel for the petitioners contends that the petitioners have compromised the matter with the complainant Gurmeet Singh respondent No.2 and Mohan Singh @ Bobby respondent No.3 has also compromised the matter, who was also involved in the dispute. He submits that with the intervention of the respectables, the matter has been amicably sorted out and on the basis of these good efforts a compromise dated 03.02.2009 (Annexure P-2) has been entered into between the parties wherein, it has been decided between them that they would not keep any grudge in the matter against each other and they have amicably settled the dispute between them. On this basis, counsel for the petitioners prays for quashing of the F.I.R. Criminal Misc. No.M-8001 of 2009 -2- Upon notice of motion having been issued, affidavit on behalf of respondent no.2 Gurmeet Singh s/o Charanjit Singh and Mohan @ Bobby respondent no.3 has been filed in this Court. In the said affidavit it has been admitted by the respondents no.2 and 3 that a compromise has been entered into between the parties and they have amicably settled the dispute and no further dispute is pending between them. It has further been stated that they have no objection if the proceedings of the F.I.R. are quashed and they do not want to further persue the matter. Gurmit Singh respondent No.2 and Mohan @ Bobby respondent No.3 are present in the Court (as identified by their counsel). On being asked by this Court Gurmit Singh and Mohan @ Bobby has admitted the factum of the compromise entered into between the parties, copy whereof is Annexure P-2 dated 03.02.2009 and has further stated that they would not have any objection if the F.I.R. and all consequential proceedings arising there from are quashed as they have amicably resolved the dispute and they do not want to pursue the same. Reliance can be made upon the Larger Bench Judgment of this Court in the case Kulvinder Singh and others Versus State of Punjab and another 2007(3) R.C.R. (Criminal) 1052, while discussing the scope of quashing of prosecution on the basis of compromise, by this Court in exercise of powers under Section 482 Cr.P.C., even in non-compoundable offences, has held as under :- “28. The compromise, in a modern society, is the sine qua non of harmony and orderly behaviour. It is the soul of justice and if the power under Section 482 of the Cr.P.C. is Criminal Misc. No.M-8001 of 2009 -3- used to enhance such a compromise which, in turn, enhances the social amity and reduces friction, then it truly is “finest hour of justice”. Disputes which have their genesis in a matrimonial discord, landlord-tenant matters, commercial transactions and other such matters can safely be dealt with by the Court by exercising its powers under Section 482 of the Cr.P.C. in the event of a compromise, but this is not to say that the power is limited to such cases. There can never be any such rigid rule to prescribe the exercise of such power, especially in the absence of any premonitions to forecast and predict eventualities which the cause of justice may throw up during the course of a litigation. 29. The only inevitable conclusion from the above discussion is that there is no statutory bar under the Cr.P.C. which can affect the inherent power of this Court under Section 482. Further, the same cannot be limited to matrimonial cases alone and the Court has the wide power to quash the proceedings even in non-compoundable offences notwithstanding the bar under Section 320 of the Cr.P.C., in order to prevent the abuse of law and to secure the ends of justice.” Therefore, in view of the discussion above, since the parties have amicably settled the matter, which is otherwise in the interest of justice and appears to have been effected to promote peace and harmony amongst the parties, the instant petition is allowed. Consequently, impugned F.I.R. No. 169 dated 15.07.2008 under Sections 323,324,326 and 34 IPC registered at Police Station Sadar Hoshiarpur and all other consequent proceedings arising there from are quashed. (AUGUSTINE GEORGE MASIH) July 30, 2009 Judge ps