Allowed

Aridaman Singh v. State of U.P. and Another

Allahabad HC9 Jul 2024A482/16876/2024

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Applicant challenged the Magistrate's order allowing a protest petition against the police final report while simultaneously taking cognizance under Section 190(1)(b) Cr.P.C. on the rejected report. Following prior decisions holding this impermissible, the High Court allowed the Section 482 application and remitted the matter for a fresh order.

What did the court decide?

Impugned order dated 27.07.2023 set aside; matter remitted to Magistrate for fresh order within two months.

Aridaman Singh vs State of U.P. and Another — Quashing and FIR | Allahabad HC (2024)

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Neutral Citation No. - 2024:AHC:125519

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Court No. - 64

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Case :- APPLICATION U/S 482 No. - 16876 of 2024

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Applicant :- Aridaman Singh Opposite Party :- State of U.P. and Another Counsel for Applicant :- Anant Kumar Tiwari,Gaurav Kakkar Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A.,Sudist Kumar

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Hon'ble Rajeev Misra,J.

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Heard Mr. V. P. Srivastava, the learned Senior Counsel, assisted by Mr. Gaurav Kakkar, the learned counsel for applicant, the learned A.G.A. for State-opposite party-1 and Mr. Durgesh Kumar Singh alongwith Mr. Sudist Kumar, the learned counsel representing first informant-opposite party-2.

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Perused the record.

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Challenge in this application under Section 482 Cr.P.C. is to the order dated 27.07.2023 passed by Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Court No.2, Agra, in Misc. Case No. 78 of 2020 (Sugreev Singh Vs. Rajat and others) arising out of Case Crime No. 82 of 2020 under Sections 147, 148, 149, 323, 307, 427, 506 I.P.C., Police Station-Pinahat, District-Agra, now pending in Court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Court No.2, Agra, whereby Court below has not only allowed the protest petition filed by first informant/opposite party-2 against police report dated 05.10.2020 submitted under Section 173(2) Cr.P.C., rejected the police report dated 05.10.2020 submitted by the Investigating Officer, under Section 173 (2) Cr.P.C. but also has simultaneously taken cognizance, in exercise of jurisdiction under Section 190(1) (b) Cr.P.C. and summoned the applicant to face trial.

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Record shows that in respect of an incident, which is alleged to have occurred on 25.06.2020, a delayed FIR dated 10.07.2020 was lodged by first informant Sugreev Singh and was registered as Case Crime No. 0082 of 2020, under Sections 147, 148, 149, 323, 504, 336, 307, 427 I.P.C., Police Station-Pinahat, District-Agra. In the aforesaid FIR, 15 persons namely - (1) Rajat, (2) Gaurav, (3) Rambrij, (4) Satyaveer, (5) Vijay, (6) Satish, (7) Jumuna, (8) Aman, (9) Anil, (10) Pedana @ Bhoopendra Singh, (11) Teeku, (12) Sonu, (13) Bhikki, (14) Bantu and (15) Suraj have been nominated as named accused, whereas 10 to 15 unknown persons have also been arraigned as accused.

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The gravamen of the allegations made in the FIR is to the effect that named accused, who had formed an unlawful assembly with a common object, abused first informant assaulted him and thereafter, one of the named accused Guddan @ Sant Kumar fired a shot from his country made gun. The FIR further records that other accused also assaulted the first informant. They further indulged in stone pelting on account of which, the first informant sustained injuries.

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After aforementioned FIR was lodged, Investigating Officer proceeded with statutory investigation of concerned case crime number in terms of Chapter-XII Cr.P.C. On the basis of material collected by him, during course of investigation, including the statements of various witnesses examined under Section 161 Cr.P.C., he came to the conclusion that offence complained of is not established. He, accordingly, opined to submit the final report. Investigating Officer, thus, submitted the police report dated 08.10.2020 (final report) in terms of Section 173(2) Cr.P.C..

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Upon submission of aforementioned police report before Court

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below, the first informant Sugreev Singh i.e. opposite party-2 herein filed his protest petition dated 21.11.2020 against the same. It is apposite to mention here that under the Code i.e. Cr.P.C., there is no provision regarding filing of protest petition by the first informant against the police report. However, the same has been provided for by the judgment of Supreme Court in Bhagwant Singh Vs. Commissioner of Police And Another, (1985) 2 SCC 537.

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After aforementioned protest petition was filed, Court below proceeded to consider the police report in the light of the protest petition. Ultimately, vide order dated 27.07.2023, Court below allowed the protest petition filed by the first informant-opposite party-2, rejected the police report no. 39 of 2020 dated 08.10.2020, and simultaneously summoned the applicant, under Sections 147, 148, 149, 323, 307, 427, 506 I.P.C. The order impugned further records that the consequential case shall proceed as a state case.

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Mr. V. P. Srivastava, the learned Senior Counsel, assisted by Mr. Gaurav Kakkar, the learned counsel for applicant submits that the order impugned in present application under Section 482 Cr.P.C. is manifestly illegal being in excess of jurisdiction. Consequently, the same is liable to be set aside by this Court.

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According to the learned senior counsel for applicant, the words "charge sheet" and "final report" have not been defined in the Code i.e. Cr.P.C. The Code (Cr.P.C.) only speaks of the police report. Section 190 Cr.P.C. provides the procedure to be adopted by the Magistrate upon submission of the police report. The parameters regarding exercise of jurisdiction by Court, under Section 190 Cr.P.C. now stands crystallized by the judgment of Supreme Court in Vishnu Kumar Tiwari Vs. State of U.P. and

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Another, (2019) 8 SCC 27.

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It is then submitted by the learned senior counsel for applicant that once the police report dated 08.10.2020 submitted by Investigating Officer was set aside (NIRAST) by Court below then in that eventuality, the Court concerned could not have taken cognizance upon the same, in exercise of jurisdiction under Section 190(1)(b) Cr.P.C. Admittedly, proceedings after taking of cognizance by the concerned Court can proceed as a state case only when the Court has taken cognizance upon the police report. Since there was no police report in existence, no cognizance could have been taken by Court below on the basis of police report. The proper course of the Court below was not to accept the police report (ASWIKAR). On the above premise, the learned senior counsel submits that the order impugned cannot be sustained and is, therefore, liable to be set aside.

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Per contra, the learned A.G.A. for State-opposite party-1 and Mr. Durgesh Kumar Singh along with Mr. Sudist Kumar, the learned counsel representing first informant-opposite party-2 have vehemently opposed the present application. They submit that the order impugned in present application is perfectly just and legal. Court below, while exercising it's jurisdiction under Section 190(1) (b) Cr.P.C. can look into the papers accompanying the police report and on basis thereof, arrive at it's own independent conclusion. The Court is not bound by the opinion expressed by the Investigating Officer in the police report. As such, no interference is warranted by this Court in present application inasmuch as, cognizance has been taken by the Court concerned only after prima-facie satisfaction has been recorded that criminality alleged to have been committed by applicant is prima-facie apparent as per the papers accompanying the police report. They, therefore, submit

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that no interference is warranted by this Court in present application. The same is, therefore, liable to be dismissed.

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Having heard Mr. V. P. Srivastava, the learned Senior Counsel, assisted by Mr. Gaurav Kakkar, the learned counsel for applicant, the learned A.G.A. for State-opposite party-1, Mr. Durgesh Kumar Singh alongwith Mr. Sudist Kumar, the learned counsel representing first informant-opposite party-2 and upon perusal of record, this Court finds that the solitary issue that has emerged for consideration before this Court is as to:- whether after rejecting the police report submitted by the Investigating Officer in terms of Section 173(2) Cr.P.C., yet the Magistrate can exercise jurisdiction under Section 190(1)(b) Cr.P.C. by taking cognizance upon the said police report and proceed with the matter as a state case.

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The issue so raised is no longer res-integra and stands concluded by the judgments of this Court in following cases;- (1) Hari Ram Vs. State of U.P. and Another, 2016 ADJ Online, 0185 (Criminal Revision No. 695 of 2001) and (2) Application U/s 482 Cr.P.C. No. 8563 of 2023 (Smt. Bhuri Vs. State of U.P. and Another) decided on 15.03.2023 . This Court in aforementioned judgments has held that once the Magistrate has rejected (NIRAST) the police report submitted under Section 173(2) Cr.P.C. then the Magistrate is denuded of his jurisdiction to take cognizance under Section 190(1)(b) Cr.P.C. and proceed with the matter as a state case. In view of above, the order impugned cannot be sustained and is, therefore, liable to be set aside.

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As a result, the present application under Section 482 Cr.P.C. succeeds and is liable to be allowed.

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It is, accordingly, allowed.

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The order impugned dated 27.07.2023 passed by Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Court No.2, Agra, in Misc. Case No. 78 of 2020 (Sugreev Singh Vs. Rajat and others) arising out of Case Crime No. 82 of 2020, under Sections 147, 148, 149, 323, 307,

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427, 506 I.P.C., Police Station-Pinahat, District-Agra) is, hereby, set aside.

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The matter shall stand remitted to Court concerned for passing a fresh order in the light of observations made herein above. The necessary exercise shall be undertaken by Court below within a period of two months from the date of presentation of a certified copy of this order.

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Order Date :- 5.8.2024 Vinay

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Digitally signed by :- VINAY KUMAR High Court of Judicature at Allahabad

Aridaman Singh v. State of U.P. and Another

Case brief

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Aridaman Singh v. State of U.P. and Another

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