High Court quashed criminal proceedings against petitioners who protested essential commodity price hikes and breached prohibitory orders without violence. The bench held that continuation of prosecution was unwarranted as no violence or adverse consequences occurred.
Quashing of impugned prosecution and criminal proceedings against petitioners.
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.
Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4632 of 2020
BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT DATED: 17.03.2020 CORAM:
THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE G.R.SWAMINATHAN Crl.O.P(MD)Nos.4632, 4635, 4636, 4645, 4682 and 4736 of 2020
In Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4632 of 2020
1.Manivel 2.Sakthivel 3.Joshep Prabagar 4.Eswaran 5.Alosiyas ... Petitioners/A1 to A5 Vs The State by The Inspector of Police, Chinnadharapuram, Karur District. (Crime No.323/2017) ... Respondent/Complainant PRAYER: Petition filed under Section 482 Code of Criminal Procedure, to call for the records pertaining to the charge sheet in S.T.C.No.6 of 2019 on the file of the learned Judicial Magistrate, Aravakurichi, Karur District and quash the same.
In Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4635 of 2020
1.Dhandapani 2.Vaiyapuri 3.Govindharaj 4.Jeyaraman 5.Palanisamy 6.Dhandapani 7.Thangavel ... Petitioners/A1 to A7
The State by The Inspector of Police, Chinnadharapuram, Karur District. (Crime No.319/2017) ... Respondent/Complainant
PRAYER: Petition filed under Section 482 Code of Criminal Procedure, to call for the records pertaining to the charge sheet in S.T.C.No.47 of 2019 on the file of the learned Judicial Magistrate, Aravakurichi, Karur District and quash the same.
1/5
Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4632 of 2020
In Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4636 of 2020
1.Nallasivam 2.Manogaran 3.Arjunan 4.Poogudi 5.Viswanathan 6.Mani 7.Subramani 8.Murasu ... Petitioners/Accused 1 to 8 The State by The Inspector of Police, Chinnadharapuram, Karur District. (Crime No.324/2017) ... Respondent/Complainant
PRAYER: Petition filed under Section 482 Code of Criminal Procedure, to call for the records pertaining to the charge sheet in S.T.C.No.7 of 2019 on the file of the learned Judicial Magistrate, Aravakurichi, Karur District and quash the same.
In Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4645 of 2020
1.Duraisamy 2.Thiyagarajan 3.Pooranasamy 4.Chinnasamy 5.Palanisamy 6.Balasubramanian 7.Kumaran 8.Krishnan 9.Karthik 10.Banumathi ... Petitioners/A1 to A10 The State by The Inspector of Police, Thennilai Police Station, Karur District. (Crime No.151/2017) ... Respondent/Complainant
PRAYER: Petition filed under Section 482 Code of Criminal Procedure, to call for the records pertaining to the charge sheet in S.T.C.No.74 of 2019 on the file of the learned Judicial Magistrate, Aravakurichi, Karur District and quash the same.
In Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4682 of 2020
1.Ramalingam
2.Supparayan
2/5
Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4632 of 2020
3.Gunasekaran 4.Palanisamy 5.Somasundaram 6.Palanisamy 7.Kuppusamy 8.Mageshwaran 9.Subramaniam 10.Suresh 11.Sivakumar 12.Murugesan ... Petitioners/A1 to A12 The State by The Inspector of Police, Thennilai Police Station, Karur District. (Crime No.149/2017) ... Respondent/Complainant PRAYER: Petition filed under Section 482 Code of Criminal Procedure, to call for the records pertaining to the charge sheet in S.T.C.No.40 of 2019 on the file of the learned Judicial Magistrate, Aravakurichi, Karur District and quash the same.
In Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4736 of 2020
1.Mohan 2.Rathinasamy 3.Rajagopal 4.Karthikeyan 5.Chinnarasu 6.Dhandapani 7.Chennimalaigounder 8.Shanmugaraj 9.Subramani S/o.Papurasu 10.Subramani S/o.Palanisamy Goundar 11.Duraisamy 12.Shanmugam K.L. 13.Kittusamy 14.Sundaram ... Petitioners/A1 to A14 The State by The Inspector of Police, Thennilai Police Station, Karur District. (Crime No.152/2017) ... Respondent/Complainant
PRAYER: Petition filed under Section 482 Code of Criminal Procedure, to call for the records pertaining to the charge sheet in https://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/hcservices/
3/5
Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4632 of 2020
S.T.C.No.73 of 2019 on the file of the learned Judicial Magistrate, Aravakurichi, Karur District and quash the same.
For Petitioner : Mr.M.Bindran
For Respondent : Mr.A.Robinson
Government Advocate (Crl.side)
in all Crl.O.Ps.
COMMON ORDER
Heard the learned counsel on either side.
2.In these criminal original petitions, the petitioners seek quashing of the impugned proceedings.
3.The petitioners had assembled for espousing a civil issue. They wanted to protest the hike in the prices of certain essential commodities like sugar. Of-course, the petitioners have technically breached the prohibitory order passed by the police and the administration. But then, the petitioners had not indulged in any kind of violence. No adverse consequence ensued. Hence, the continuation of the impugned prosecution is not warranted. It stands quashed. These criminal original petitions are allowed.
// True Copy //
Rmi
To
4/5
Crl.O.P.(MD)No.4632 of 2020
4.The Additional Public Prosecutor, Madurai Bench of Madras High Court, Madurai.
+6 CC to M/s.M.BINDRAN, Advocate SR-12178[F],12179, 12180, 12181, 12182, 12183
Crl.O.P(MD)Nos. 4632, 4635, 4636, 4645, 4682 and 4736 of 2020 17.03.2020
5/5
3 issues framed by the court
Whether the criminal proceedings initiated against petitioners protesting essential commodity price hikes should be quashed given the absence of violence or adverse consequences.
Whether the continuation of prosecution against petitioners who breached prohibitory orders without violence is warranted.
Whether criminal petitions filed by petitioners are to be allowed upon finding no violence or adverse consequences ensued.
1 provisions across 1 enactments
Manivel
Dhandapani
Nallasivam
The State
G.R. Swaminathan
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
