Court No. - 44
Case :- APPLICATION U/S 482 No. - 21983 of 2018 Applicant :- Praveen Kumar And 3 Others Opposite Party :- State Of U.P. And Another Counsel for Applicant :- Dharmendra Pratap Singh Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A.
Hon'ble Rajeev Misra,J.
Heard Mr. Dharmendra Pratap Singh, learned counsel for the applicants and the learned A.G.A. for the State.
This application under Section 482 Cr.P.C. has been filed challenging the summoning order dated 28.11.2017 passed by the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Court No.2, Muzaffarnagar in Complaint Case No. 5201 of 2009 (Km. Shilpi Sharma Vs. Praveen Kumar and others) under Sections 323, 504, 506 I.P.C., Police Station-Civil Lines, District-Muzaffar Nagar as well as the entire proceedings of the above mentioned complaint case.
This application under Section 482 Cr.P.C. has been filed challenging the order dated 22.3.2018, passed by the Additional Sessions Judge Court No.6, Mathura in Criminal Revision No. 167 of 2016 (Rajkumar and others Vs. State of U.P. and another) arising out of the summoning order dated 13.4.2016 passed by the Judicial Magistrate, Mathura in Complaint Case No. 12 of 2015 (Harvir Singh Vs. Rajkumar and others) under Sections 323, 452, 504, 506 IPC, P.S. Nauhjil, District Mathura.
All the contentions raised by the applicants' counsel relate to disputed questions of fact. The court has also been called upon to adjudge the testimonial worth of prosecution evidence and evaluate the same on the basis of various intricacies of factual details which have been touched upon by learned counsel. The veracity and credibility of material furnished on behalf of the prosecution has been questioned and false implication has been pleaded.
The law regarding sufficiency of material which may justify the summoning of accused and also the court's decision to proceed against him in a given case is well settled. The court has to eschew itself from embarking upon a roving enquiry into the last details of the case. It is also not advisable to adjudge whether the case shall ultimately end in conviction or not. Only a prima facie satisfaction of the court about the existence of sufficient ground to proceed in the matter is required.
Through a catena of decisions given by Hon'ble Apex Court this legal aspect has been expatiated upon at length and the law that has evolved over a period of several decades is too well settled. The cases of (1) Chandra Deo Singh Vs. Prokash Chandra Bose AIR 1963 SC 1430 , (2) Vadilal Panchal Vs. Dattatraya Dulaji Ghadigaonker AIR 1960 SC 1113 and (3) Smt. Nagawwa Vs. Veeranna Shivalingappa Konjalgi 1976 3 SCC 736 may be usefully referred to in this regard.
The Apex Court decisions given in the case of R.P. Kapur Vs. State of Punjab AIR 1960 SC 866 and in the case of State of Haryana Vs. Bhajan Lal 1992 SCC(Cr.) 426 have also recognized certain categories by way of illustration which may justify the quashing of a complaint or charge sheet. Some of them are akin to the illustrative examples given in the above referred case of Smt. Nagawwa Vs. Veeranna Shivalingappa Konjalgi 1976 3 SCC 736. The cases where the allegations made against the accused or the evidence collected by the Investigating Officer do not constitute any offence or where the allegations are absurd or extremely improbable impossible to believe or where prosecution is legally barred or where criminal proceeding is malicious and malafide instituted with ulterior motive of grudge and vengeance alone may be the fit cases for the High Court in which the criminal proceedings may be quashed. Hon'ble Apex Court in Bhajan Lal's case has recognized certain categories in which Section-482 of Cr.P.C. or Article-226 of the Constitution may be successfully invoked.
Illumined by the case law referred to herein above, this Court has adverted to the entire record of the case.
The submissions made by the applicants' counsel call for adjudication on pure questions of fact which may be adequately adjudicated upon only by the trial court and while doing so even the submissions made on points of law can also be more appropriately gone into by the trial court in this case. This Court does not deem it proper, and therefore cannot be persuaded to have a pre-trial before the actual trial begins. A threadbare discussion of various facts and circumstances, as they emerge from the allegations made against the accused, is being purposely avoided by the Court for the reason, lest the same might cause any prejudice to either side during trial. But it shall suffice to observe that the perusal of the complaint, and also the material available on record make out a prima facie case against the accused at this stage and there appear to be sufficient ground for proceeding against the accused. I do not find any justification to quash the complaint or the summoning order or the proceedings against the applicant arising out of them as the case does not fall in any of the categories recognized by the Apex Court which may justify their quashing.
The prayer for quashing the same is refused as I do not see any abuse of the Court's process either.
Considering the facts and circumstances of the case, it is observed that in case applicants appear before the court below and apply for bail within two month from today, the court below shall make an endeavour to decide the bail application of the applicants in the light of the observation made in the case of Brahm Singh and Ors. Vs. State of U.P. and Others, reported in 2016 (7) ADJ 151.
As an interim measure, it is provided that for a period of two months from today or till the applicants appear before the court below, whichever is earlier, no coercive action shall be taken against the applicants.
With the aforesaid observation, the present application is finally disposed of.
Order Date :- 31.7.2018 YK