Source: https://www.shoneekapoor.com/c-subramanyam-vs-c-sumathi-anr/
Timestamp: 2019-04-22 22:32:43+00:00

Document:
This is the reference made by a learned Single Judge of this Court on 12.2.2002 in respect of order dated 19.7.2001 passed by the learned Judicial First Class Magistrate, Pakala in Crl. M.P. No. 798 of 2001 in M.C. No. 5 of 2000.
2. The brief facts that are necessary for answering the present Reference are that the first respondent herein filed a petition seeking to set aside the order dated 4.10.2000 whereunder the maintenance petition filed by her in M.C. No. 5 of 2000 was dismissed for default. She filed the said maintenance petition against her husband. When the case came up for hearing on 4.10.2000 for her non-appearance, the Court dismissed the maintenance petition for default. She filed a petition seeking restoration of the maintenance petition on the ground of ill-health. Her husband contended that no medical certificate in support of the claim of ill-health was filed and the default order could not be set aside. After hearing both sides, the learned Magistrate allowed the petition placing reliance on the decision reported in the case of Smt. Prema Jain v. Sudhir Kumar Jain, 1980 Cr.LJ 80. Against the said order, the husband filed Crl. R.C. No. 984 of 2001 which came up before the learned Single Judge.
3. The learned Judge, after considering the decisions of various High Courts and for the reasons mentioned in the reference order, is of the view that having regard to the fact that the trend of judicial decision appears to be that an application for maintenance dismissed for default, can be restored and the Magistrate can entertain an application for setting aside the default order and pass appropriate orders thereon. Since this view is contrary to the view of this Court in Abdul Wahed v. Hafeez Begum and Others, 1986 (2) APLJ 200, the learned Single Judge is of the opinion that the judicial discipline requires that the matter should be referred to the Bench consisting of two Judges to have an authoritative pronouncement in the matter. The Reference is accordingly posted before us.
5. According to the learned Single Judge that when the Magistrate has no power to dismiss the application filed under Section 125 for default and pass an illegal order, by dismissing the petition for default that is to say, he has no power to rectify the mistake and the illegal order passed by him should be perpetuated would result in miscarriage of justice and the Court should rectify its own mistake as seen from the principle “actus curiae neminem gravabit”. It is also observed that the Apex Court was of the view that the proceedings under Section 488 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (old Code) are of civil nature vide Mst. Jagir Kaur and Another v. Jaswant Singh, AIR 1963 SC 1521.
“A Criminal Court cannot even review its judgment or order. It can only correct clerical or arithmetical errors. Section 488(6) contemplates only one situation in which restoration of an order passed under Section 488, Cr.P.C. can be done. It is only when an ex parte order has been passed against a husband, this remedy is not available to a wife who files a petition for maintenance. The learned Sessions Judge was wrong in holding that the Magistrate could have restored her application in the exercise of inherent powers. As held in the case of Krishna Rao Palne v. Pramila Bai, (1976 Crl. L.J. 1819) (All.), Magistrate has no power under Section 561A to order restoration. The inherent powers are possessed only by the High Court. The proceedings may be of a quasi-judicial nature but that does not mean that the Magistrate dealing with them gets all the powers of a Civil Court. In Hakimi Jan Bibi v. Mouze Ali, (1905 (2) Crl. LJ 213) a Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court had held that the law does not empower a Magistrate to rehear an application for maintenance under Section 488, Cr.P.C. dismissed for non-appearance. I respectfully subscribe to this view. A wife whose application for maintenance has been dismissed for default can file a second application and on this ground also the question of restoration of previous application does not arise” .
‘9. As long as the order of the Magistrate does not amount to a judgment or a final order there is nothing in the Criminal Procedure Code prohibiting the Magistrate from entertaining a fresh application asking for the same relief on the same facts or from reconsidering that order. During the course of the proceedings, a Magistrate has to pass various interlocutory orders and it will not be correct to say that he has no jurisdiction to reconsider them….’.
This provision relates to imposition of costs to the successful parties in order to compensate for the costs incurred. So, this provision does not confer any power to the Magistrate to recall the order dated 4.10.2000. The maintenance proceedings stood terminated by that date and the case was disposed of. There is no provision in the Code to restore the application under Section 125, Cr.P.C. which was dismissed for default. In the absence of specific provision, the maxim has no application as there is no lis pending in the Trial Court. Section 362 of the Cr.P.C. mandates that no Court, when it has signed its judgment or final order disposing of a case, shall alter or review the same except to correct a clerical or arithmetical error. This section is based on an acknowledged principle of law that once a matter is finally disposed of by a Court, the said Court in the absence of a specfic statutory provision becomes functus officio and disentitled to entertain a prayer with the same relief unless formal order of final disposal is set aside by the Court of competent jurisdiction in a manner prescribed by law. The Court becomes functus officio the moment a final order disposing of the case is signed. In the new Section 362 of the Code of Criminal Procedure which was drafted keeping in view of the recommendations of 41st Report of the Law Commission and the Joint Select Committees appointed for the purpose, has extended the bar of review not only to the judgment, but also to the final order other than the judgment. This provision applies to any order or judgment disposing of the case under Criminal Procedure Law. Though the proceedings under Section 125 are in the nature of civil proceedings, that does not mean Section 151 of CPC would apply. Therefore, any order passed under Section 125 of Code of Criminal Procedure is subject to Section 362 of Cr.P.C. Though the order passed by the learned Judicial Magistrate of First Class is illegal, but he cannot rectify it under the guise of review. It can be corrected only by invoking revisional jurisdiction by the concerned Court as contemplated under the Code. Therefore, in our view, entertainment of the Miscellaneous Petition after disposal of the main case and restoration of the main case by the learned Judicial First Class Magistrate, Pakala are unwarranted and not referable to any statutory provision. In support of our view, a decision reported in the case of Superintendent and Remembrancer of Legal Affairs, West Bengal v. Mohan Singh, AIR 1975 SC 1002, may be quoted, wherein it has clearly been laid down that once a judgment has been pronounced by a High Court either in exercise of its appellate or revisional jurisdiction, no review or revision can be entertained against that judgment, as there is no provision in the Code of Criminal Procedure which would enable the High Court to review the same or to exercise revisional jurisdiction. In the same way, the subordinate Criminal Courts have no inherent power to invoke under Section 482 of Cr.P.C. which vests such power only with High Courts. There is no provison in the Cr.P.C. which would enable the learned Magistrate to review or recall the order dated 4.10.2000.

References: v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v. 
 v.