High Court of Kerala quashed criminal proceedings against a petitioner (2nd accused) in a counterfeit currency case after noting that acquittals of other accused were based on illegal search and seizure, rendering the prosecution's substratum destroyed.
All proceedings against the petitioner in Crime No.158/2004 and S.C.No.786/2023 were quashed.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BECHU KURIAN THOMAS
THURSDAY, THE 18TH DAY OF JULY 2024 / 27TH ASHADHA, 1946
CRL.MC NO. 1655 OF 2024
CRIME NO.158/2004 OF NADAKKAVU POLICE STATION, KOZHIKODE
IN LP NO.46 OF 2009 OF JUDICIAL MAGISTRATE OF FIRST CLASS -
II(MOBILE) KOZHIKODE
NOW PENDING AS S.C.NO.786/2023 ON THE FILES OF THE ADDITIONAL
SESSIONS COURT-IV, KOZHIKODE
PETITIONER/2ND ACCUSED:
ABDUL RASHEED.P.E,
AGED 43 YEARS
S/O.SAITHALAVIKOYA,
SAHEENA MANZIL, RAMANATTUKARA.P.O,
KOZHIKODE., PIN – 673633
BY ADVS.
M.U.VIJAYALAKSHMI
K.JAJU BABU (SR.)
BRIJESH MOHAN
SACHIN RAMESH
T.S.ATHIRA
RESPONDENT/STATE & COMPLAINANT:
STATE OF KERALA,
REPRESENTED BY PUBLIC PROSECUTOR,
HIGH COURT OF KERALA,
ERNAKULAM, PIN – 682031
BY ADV. NOUSHAD K. A.
PUBLIC PROSECUTOR
THIS CRIMINAL MISC. CASE HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON
18.07.2024, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING:
Crl.M.C.No.1655 of 2024
-:2:-
BECHU KURIAN THOMAS, J. --------------------------------------------Crl.M.C.No.1655 of 2024
Dated this the 18th day of July, 2024
ORDER
Petitioner was the second accused in Crime No.158/2004 of Nadakkavu Police Station, Kozhikode, registered for the offences under Sections 489A, 489B, 489C and 489D r/w Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. While the case was pending before the committal court, petitioner and few other accused absconded, and therefore, the cases against them were split up. As against accused 5, 6, and 8, the trial proceeded as S.C.No.199/2008. The fourth accused was also later tried in S.C.No.16/2020, seventh accused in S.C.No.348/2013, and the third accused in S.C.No.672/2017. All those accused were, after trial, acquitted. Petitioner seeks the benefit of acquittal of the co-accused.
Crl.M.C.No.1655 of 2024
-:3:-
acquittal was based on the finding that the search and seizure during investigation was not done in compliance with Section 102 Cr.P.C, and the accused were acquitted after observing that the search and seizure were illegal.
Criminal miscellaneous case is allowed as above.
Sd/-
BECHU KURIAN THOMAS
JUDGE
jka/18.07.24.
Crl.M.C.No.1655 of 2024
-:4:-
APPENDIX OF CRL.MC 1655/2024
PETITIONER’S ANNEXURES
Annexure A1CERTIFIED COPY OF THE FIR IN RESPECT OF
CRIME NO.158/2004 OF NADAKKAVU POLICE
STATION KOZHIKODE.
Annexure A2CERTIFIED COPY OF THE CHARGE FRAMED BY THE
CRIME BRANCH, KOZHIKODE DATED 14.3.2007.
Annexure A3CERTIFIED COPY OF THE ORDER DATED 13-1-
2022 OF THE ADDITIONAL DISTRICT AND
SESSIONSJUDGE-IV,KOZHIKODEIN
SC.NO.672/2017.
3 issues framed by the court
Whether proceedings against the 2nd accused should be quashed given the acquittal of other accused on the illegality of search and seizure.
Whether the substratum of the prosecution case is destroyed when search and seizure in modification complaints are found illegal.
Whether continuation of proceedings against the petitioner is an abuse of the process of law.
2 provisions across 2 enactments
ABDUL RASHEED.P.E
STATE OF KERALA
BECHU KURIAN THOMAS
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court