Petitioners are accused Nos.1 to 3 in Crime No.786/2010 of Aranmula Police Station registered for offences under Sections 447, 294(b), 506(ii) and 34 Indian Penal Code. The 2nd respondent is the defacto complainant. The 1st petitioner is a close relative of the defacto complainant. The allegations raised in the crime is that on 13.8.2010 at about 11:10 pm due to the prior enmity between the sister of the 1st petitioner, petitioners came to the house of the defacto complainant and abused defacto complainant and used obscene words and defacto complainant has been made to suffer mental injuries. After registration of the crime and completion of investigation, final report was filed which is now pending as C.C.No.324/2010 on the file of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-I, Pathanamthitta. It is submitted that the petitioners and 2nd respondent have discussed the matter and have arrived at an amicable settlement of the matter and that the 2nd respondent has no further interest to continue the case against the petitioners. As stated, petitioners and 2nd respondent are in good amiable terms and that the 2nd respondent has sworn to affidavit dated 10.10.2014 stating the aforementioned aspects regarding settlement and that she has no interest to continue the above said case against the petitioners and that the incident occurred due to family dispute and that she has no objection to quash the proceedings against the petitioners in the aforementioned impugned criminal proceedings etc. It is submitted that the parties have amicably settled the disputes between them and that further continuance of the impugned criminal proceedings based on such personal disputes is not warranted. It is in the background of these facts and circumstances that the aforementioned Crl.M.C has been filed seeking to quash the impugned criminal proceedings.
2. The Crl.M.C. has been admitted and Sri.P.V.Dileep has taken notice for the 2nd respondent and the learned Public Prosecutor has taken notice for the 1st respondent State of Kerala.
3. Heard Sri. Ajith Murali, learned counsel for the petitioners, Sri.P.V.Dileep, learned counsel for the 2nd respondent and the learned Public Prosecutor appearing for the 1st respondent State of Kerala.
4. The learned counsel for the petitioners has submitted that during the pendency of the aforementioned criminal proceedings, the matter has been settled amicably between the parties, and that the continuation of the proceedings in the above case/crime will cause miscarriage of justice to both parties as the real disputants to the controversy have arrived at an amicable settlement and any further continuation of the criminal proceedings will amount to sheer wastage of time and money and would unnecessarily strain the judicial, administrative and financial resources of the State.
5. Sri.P.V.Dileep, learned counsel appearing for the 2nd respondent has submitted, on the basis of the specific instructions furnished by the 2nd respondent, that the 2nd respondent has amicably settled the disputes with the petitioners as stated above and that she has no objection in the quashment of the impugned criminal proceedings and that the complainant/victim/injured does not intend to proceed any further against the petitioners as she has no grievance against them and that she will not raise any dispute/complaint in future if the prayer for quashing the impugned criminal proceedings is allowed.
6. The learned Public Prosecutor also was heard, who also has not raised any serious objections and submitted that the court may consider the prayer in this case in the light of the law well settled by the Apex Court in that regard.
7. After having carefully considered the submissions of the parties and after having perused the pleadings as well as the documents and materials placed in this matter, it can be seen that the offences alleged are more or less personal in nature and not much element of public interest is involved. The crucial aspect of the matter is that though such offences are involved, the real disputants to the controversy, which has led to the impugned criminal proceedings, have actually arrived at an amicable settlement of the matter. From the submissions made by the learned counsel for the 2nd respondent, it is clear to the Court that the injured/victim/defacto complainant has no further grievance against the petitioners/accused in the light of the settlement arrived at by them. In this connection, it is relevant to note the decision of the Apex Court in the case between Gian Singh v. State of Punjab reported in 2013 (1) SCC (Cri) 160, para 61 = (2012) 10 SCC 303 = 2012(4) KLT 108(SC), wherein the Supreme Court has held as follows in para 61 thereof [ See SCC (Cri)]:
“61. The position that emerges from the above discussion can be summarised thus: the power of the High Court in quashing a criminal proceeding or FIR or complaint in exercise of its inherent jurisdiction is distinct and different from the power given to a criminal court for compounding the offences under S.320 of the Code. Inherent power is of wide plenitude with no statutory limitation but it has to be exercised in accord with the guideline engrafted in such power viz;(i) to secure the ends of justice or (ii) to prevent abuse of the process of any Court. In what cases power to quash the criminal proceeding or complaint or F.I.R. may be exercised where the offender and victim have settled their dispute would depend on the facts and circumstances of each case and no category can be prescribed..
It is further held as follows:-
“......... But the criminal cases having overwhelmingly and pre-dominatingly civil flavour stand on different footing for the purposes of quashing, particularly the offences arising from commercial, financial, mercantile, civil, partnership or such like transactions or the offences arising out of matrimony relating to dowry etc. or the family disputes where the wrong is basically private or personal in nature and the parties have resolved their entire dispute. In this category of cases, High Court may quash criminal proceedings if in its view, because of the compromise between the offender and victim, the possibility of conviction is remote and bleak and continuation of criminal case would put accused to great oppression and prejudice and extreme injustice would be caused to him by not quashing the criminal case despite full and complete settlement and compromise with the victim ”
In the decision reported in the case Yogendra Yadav & others v. The State of Jharkhand & another reported in 2014 (8) Scale 634 = III (2014) Current Criminal Reports CCR 426 (SC), the Apex Court has held as follows:
“When the High Court is convinced that the offences are entirely personal in nature and, therefore, do not affect public peace or tranquility and where it feels that quashing of such proceedings on account of compromise would bring about peace and would secure ends of justice, it should not hesitate to quash them”.
The Apex Court in the above case was dealing with a case involving offences under Sections 341, 323, 324, 504 & 307 r/w Section 34 Indian Penal Code.
8. Considering the facts and circumstances of this case, it is seen that the impugned criminal proceedings have arisen consequent to certain personal disputes between the petitioners and the 2nd respondent due to some family dispute and they have arrived at a harmonious settlement of such disputes whereby it has also been agreed to terminate the criminal proceedings. Hence following decisions of the Apex Court cited supra, this Court is inclined to hold that the Crl.M.C. can be allowed by granting the prayers sought for.
In the result, Crl.M.C is allowed and impugned Annexure- A final report/charge sheet which arose out of Crime No.786/2010 of Aranmula Police Station which is now pending as C.C.No.324/2010 on the file of the judicial First Class Magistrate Court-I, Pathanamthitta and all further proceedings taken thereon stands quashed. The petitioner shall produce certified copies of this order before the court below concerned as well as before the Station House Officer, Aranmula Police Station, Pathanamthitta District.
bkn/-
ALEXANDER THOMAS, Judge.