The petitioner herein is the original second accused in Crime No.119/1996 of the Changaramkulam Police Station, registered under Sections 447 and 323 of the Indian Penal Code and also under Section 3(1)(XI) of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. The accused Nos.1, 3 and 4 in the crime faced trial before the Special Court for SC/ST cases, Manjeri in S.C No.169/2003 and obtained a judgment of acquittal when the material witnesses including the defacto complainant turned hostile, in view of the settlement arrived out of court. The case against the petitioner herein was split up and re-filed as S.C No.169/2013 when he consistently remained absent and absconded from legal process. The case now stands transferred to the register of long pending cases as L.P No.1/2013. Now the petitioner has brought this application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure to quash the prosecution on the ground that he and the defacto Crl.M.C No.5676 of 2014 2 complainant have amicably settled the whole dispute out of court. In view of the allegations under the provisions of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, I directed the defacto complainant Devaki to appear in person before the Court. She is the second respondent in this proceeding. She submitted in open court that she has settled the whole dispute with the accused and that she has no grievance or complaint. She has also filed affidavit to the effect that the whole dispute stands amicably resolved, and that she has no grievance or complaint now. The judgment of the Special Court, Manjeri in S.C No.169/2003 shows that the original accused Nos.1,3 and 4 were acquitted when all the material witnesses including Devaki turned hostile during trial in view of the amicable settlement made out of court. In the present circumstances, I find that continuance of prosecution as against the petitioner herein will be a sheer waste of time. In so many decisions the Hon'ble Supreme Court has held that in such cases where composition as such is not possible under the law, the High Court can quash the prosecution under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. There is reason to believe that the complaint under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes Crl.M.C No.5676 of 2014 3 (Prevention of Atrocities) Act happened to be filed on some misapprehension.
In the result, this Criminal Miscellaneous Case is allowed. The prosecution pending against the petitioner herein in L.P No.1/2013 (S.C No.169/2013) before the Special Court, Manjeri will stand quashed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, and the petitioner will stand released from prosecution. The bail bond, if any, executed by the petitioner will stand discharged.
P.UBAID JUDGE ab