Court No. - 41
Case :- CRIMINAL MISC. WRIT PETITION No. - 25008 of 2019 Petitioner :- Shiyasharan Gutam And 2 Others Respondent :- State Of U P And 2 Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Sharad Saran Srivastava Counsel for Respondent :- G.A.,Shekhar Gangal
Hon'ble Mrs. Sunita Agarwal,J. Hon'ble Deepak Verma,J.
Heard Sri Rakesh Pandey, learned Senior Advocate assisted by Sri Sharad Saran Srivastava, learned counsels appearing on behalf of the petitioners and Sri Anoop Trivedi, learned Senior Advocate assisted by Sri Shekhar Gangal, learned counsel for the respondent no.3 and perused the record.
The prayer in the present petition is for quashing of the First Information Report dated 11.09.2019 lodged by the respondent no.3, under sections 420, 467, 468 & 471 I.P.C., registered as Case Crime No.0450 of 2019 at Police Station Khair, District Aligarh.
It is contended by Sri Rakesh Pandey, learned Senior Advocate that the implication of involvement of the petitioners herein, who were/are posted as Class III employees in Nagar Palika Parishad Khair, District Aligarh cannot be found in the preliminary enquiry report dated 19.06.2019. The allegations of illegal appointment of 16 persons in Class III posts in Nagar Palika Parishad Khair cannot be attributed to the petitioners herein.
No offence could be made out from the mere reading of the First Information Report, as it does not disclose the involvement of the petitioners in illegal appointment, if any, of their wards/children. Mere fact that the petitioners were posted on Class III posts in Nagar Palika Parishad Khair, Aligarh would not be sufficient to say that they were involved in the alleged criminal offence.
The order of the Principal Secretary, Government of U.P. dated 05.08.2019, which is the basis of lodging of the First Information Report dated 11.09.2019 is a result of non- implication of his independent mind on the preliminary enquiry report placed before him. It is further contended that the appointees have challenged the orders of cancellation of their appointment and interim orders have been granted in their favour. No conclusion, as such, can be drawn regarding illegality of their appointment.
Sri Anoop Trivedi, learned Senior Advocate appearing for the respondent no.3, on the other hand, vehemently contends that the petitioners therein had approached this Court in Civil Misc.Writ Petition No.28554 of 2019 challenging the preliminary enquiry report dated 19.06.2019 and the order of the Principal Secretary dated 05.08.2019 directing for registration of First Information Report against them in the matter of illegal appointment of their wards/children of Class III posts in Nagar Palika Parishad Khair, Aligarh. The said writ petition was dismissed on 13.09.2019 noticing that the petitioners had been named amongst the officials charged with the act of facilitating illegal appointments in the Nagar Palika Parishad.
Further the anticipatory Criminal Misc. Bail Application no.40039 of 2019 connected with Criminal Misc.Bail Application nos.39533 of 2019, 39383 of 2019 & 39401 of 2019 filed by the petitioners herein have been rejected vide judgment and order dated 21.11.2019 passed by this Court. The interim protection sought by the petitioners herein staying their arrest in the present First Information Report has been repelled.
No case is made out for quashing of the First Information Report and interim protection cannot be granted to the petitioners in view of the fact that their anticipatory bail applications have already been rejected.
First Information Report had been lodged after preliminary enquiry made into the matter of illegal appointment on Class III posts in the Nagar Palika Parishad Khair, wherein the present petitioners were/are posted and their involvement is found in the preliminary enquiry. On the directions issued by the Principal Secretary, the First Information Report had been lodged.
Moreover, no evidence is necessary at the stage of lodging of the First Information Report, in as much as prima-facie satisfaction of the competent authority of the involvement of the petitioners in the illegal appointment is sufficient.
Having noticed to the said submission and having gone through the preliminary enquiry report and the order of the Principal Secretary as also decisions of this Court in the writ petition and anticipatory bail applications filed by the petitioners, this Court is of the considered view that the petitioners have not been able to make out a case for quashing of the First Information Report. From the reading of the First Information Report, it cannot be said that it does not discloses commission of a cognizable offence.
The writ petition is, thus, found devoid of merits and hence dismissed.
Order Date :- 18.12.2019/SKD