Allowed

Gauri Shankar Prasad and Anr. v. State Of Bihar and Anr.

Patna HC3 Jan 2014CR. MISC./1897/2013

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

The High Court of Patna allowed the petition to quash the order directing process and the entire prosecution. The court held that the criminal proceedings were instituted to settle a civil dispute arising from a land transfer and were maliciously filed to vent a private grudge.

What did the court decide?

The order dated 04.08.2012 and the entire prosecution arising in Complaint Case No. 156C of 2012 are hereby quashed.

Gauri Shankar Prasad and Anr. Vs State Of Bihar and Anr. — Cheque Dishonour | Patna HC (2014)

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA

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Criminal Miscellaneous No.1897 of 2013

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====================================================== 1. Gauri Shankar Prasad son of Sita Ram Yadav. 2. Sunil Prasad, son of Sita Ram Yadav. .... .... Petitioner/s Versus State Of Bihar & Anr .... .... Opposite Party/s

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====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE DINESH KUMAR SINGH ORAL ORDER 6 03-01-2014 The present application has been filed for

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The present application has been filed for quashing of the order dated 04.08.2012 passed by learned J.M. 1^st Class, Hilsa, Nalanda in Protest-Cum-Complaint Case No. 156C of 2012 arising out of Hilsa P.S. Case No. 208 of 2011 whereby learned Magistrate directed to issue process on the basis of protest-cum-complaint after cognizance being taken for the offences punishable under Sections 504 and 506/34 of the IPC.

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Initially, the complaint was filed with accusation of the offences punishable under Sections 120B, 420, 467, 468, 471, 379, 341, 323, 307 and 504/34 of the IPC and Section 27 of the Arms Act, which subsequently came to be registered as Hilsa P.S. Case No. 208 of 2011 after being transferred under Section 156(3) of the Cr. P.C.

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It is alleged in the complaint that the accused persons tried to take possession of the land of the

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Patna High Court Cr.Misc. No.1897 of 2013 (6) dt.03-01-2014

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complainant on gun point and also tried to cause firearm injury to the son of the complainant, when diesel, pump, machine and other articles were also taken away by the accused persons.

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It is submitted by learned counsel for the petitioner that during investigation, the accusation was found false and petitioners were not sent up for trial but after acceptance of final form, on protest petition, which was treated as a complaint, the process has been directed to be issued after cognizance being taken for the offences punishable under Section 504 and 506/34 of the IPC. For the occurrence of 25.06.2011, the complaint was filed on 01.07.2011, upon which, process has been directed to be issued, little realizing that the complainant has admitted in his SA that the complainant’s land has been transferred in favour of the petitioner by the own brother of the complainant namely Ram Pravesh Mahto, thus in the background of civil nature of share dispute, the complainant tried to get his dispute redressed by seeking remedy through criminal forum. Hence, the prosecution has been launched only to wreak vengeance upon the petitioners.

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It is submitted by learned counsel for the

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Patna High Court Cr.Misc. No.1897 of 2013 (6) dt.03-01-2014

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complainant that on finding prima facie case, the cognizance has been taken.

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Considering the rival submissions of the parties, particularly in view of the admission of the complainant during S.A. that the dispute arose due to transfer of the land by his brother in favour of the petitioner, this Court is of the view that for redressal of civil nature of dispute, the complainant tried to get redressed his grievances through the criminal forum, which has been deprecated by the Apex Court in the case of Indian Oil Corporation Vs. NEPC India Limited and ors., reported in (2006) 6 SCC 736 Paragraph no. 13 read as follows:-

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“While on this issue, it is necessary to take notice of a growing tendency in business circles to convert purely civil disputes into criminal cases. This is obviously on account of a prevalent impression that civil law remedies are time consuming and do not adequately protect the interests of lenders/creditors. Such a tendency is seen in several family disputes also, leading to irretrievable break down of marriages/families. There is also an impression that if a person could somehow be entangled in a criminal prosecution, there is a likelihood of imminent settlement. Any effort to settle civil disputes and claims, which do not involve any criminal offence, by applying pressure through criminal prosecution should be deprecated and discouraged. In G. Sagar Suri V. State of U.P., this Court observed:-

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Patna High Court Cr.Misc. No.1897 of 2013 (6) dt.03-01-2014

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"It is to be seen if a matter, which is essentially of civil nature, has been given a cloak of criminal offence. Criminal proceedings are not a short cut of other remedies available in law. Before issuing process a criminal court has to exercise a great deal of caution. For the accused it is a serious matter. This Court has laid certain principles on the basis of which High Court is to exercise its jurisdiction under Section 482 of the Code. Jurisdiction under this Section has to be exercised to prevent abuse of the process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice."

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The materials on record also suggest that in order to put pressure to settle the civil nature of dispute, the present complaint has been filed to wreak vengeance on the petitioners with a view to spite them due to private and personal grudge. Hence, the present prosecution deserves to be quashed, in view of the ratio laid down in the case of State of Haryana and Ors. Vs. Bhajan Lal and Ors. as reported in 1992 Supp (1) Supreme Court Cases 335, particularly in view of the 7^th category, enunciated by way of illustration for quashing criminal prosecution in para 102, which reads as follows:-

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“In the backdrop of the interpretation of the various relevant provisions of the Code under Chapter XIV and of the principles of law enunciated by this Court in a series of decisions relating to the exercise of the extraordinary power under Article 226 or the inherent powers under Section 482 of the Code which we have extracted

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Patna High Court Cr.Misc. No.1897 of 2013 (6) dt.03-01-2014

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and reproduced above, we give the following categories of cases by way of illustration wherein such power could be exercised either to prevent abuse of the process of any Court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice, though it may not be possible to lay down any precise, clearly defined and sufficiently channelised and inflexible guidelines or rigid formulae and to give an exhaustive list of myriad kinds of cases wherein such power should be exercised”.

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(1)…………………….

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(2)……………………. (3)……………………. (4)……………………. (5)……………………. (6)……………………. (7) Where a criminal proceeding is manifestly attended with mala fide and/or where the proceeding is maliciously instituted with an ulterior motive for wreaking vengeance on the accused and with a view to spite him due to private and personal grudge.”

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In view of the above discussion, allowing the present prosecution to continue will be an abuse of process of the Court. Hence to secure the ends of justice, the order dated 04.08.2012 passed in Complaint Case No. 156C of 2012 passed by learned JM, 1^st Class, Hilsa, Nalanda whereby the process has been directed to be issued after cognizance being taken for the offences punishable under Sections 504 and 506/34 of the IPC including the entire prosecution of the aforesaid case with regard to the

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petitioners is hereby quashed.
Accordingly, the present application is allowed.
(Dinesh Kumar Singh, J)
Amrendra/-

Gauri Shankar Prasad and Anr. v. State Of Bihar and Anr.

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Gauri Shankar Prasad and Anr. v. State Of Bihar and Anr.

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