The petitioner herein is the accused in C.C No.357 of 2008 before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Vaikom. It is a prosecution brought under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act. He filed this original petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of India for orders quashing the prosecution on the ground that the trial court has no territorial jurisdiction. If at all his case is acceptable that the court has no territorial jurisdiction, the prosecution as such cannot be quashed. He will have to approach the trial court and convince the learned Magistrate that the said court has no territorial jurisdiction. If the court is so dissatisfied, the learned Magistrate will return the complaint for presentation before the proper court. Now in view of the position of law recently settled by the Hon'ble Supreme Court, proper decision as regards the jurisdiction will have to be taken by the trial court. O.P (Crl) No.458 of 2013 2 Without prejudice to the right of the petitioner to approach the trial court itself for proper relief, this petition can be closed.
In the result, this petition is closed without prejudice to the right of the petitioner to approach the trial court itself for appropriate relief as regards territorial jurisdiction.
ma /True copy/ Sd/- P.UBAID JUDGE P.S to Judge