IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 03RD DAY OF JANUARY 2019 BEFORE THE HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE JOHN MICHAEL CUNHA CRIMINAL PETITION NO.2485 OF 2016 BETWEEN:
1. SRI SIDDABASAVAIAH AGED ABOUT 50 YEARS S/O.LATE. SIDDABASAVAIAH, R/AT NO.131/A, 3RD CROSS, SRIRANGANAGAR, BSK III STAGE, BENGALURU-560085.
2. SMT PUTTASIDDAMMA @ LAKSHMI AGED ABOUT 32 YEARS, W/O.K.NANJUNDAIAH, R/AT NO.138/2, 3RD CROSS, SHRIRANGANAGAR, BSK III STAGE, BENGALURU-560085.
3. SMT SHIVAMMA AGED ABOUT 53 YEARS, W/O.SHIVALINGAIAH, R/AT HARIHARA BOOVAHALLI VILLAGE, SATHANUR HOBLI, KANAKAPURA TALUK, RAMANAGARA DISTRICT.
(BY SRI: K ABHINAV ANAND, ADVOCATE) ... PETITIONERS AND:
1. STATE BY HALAGURU POLICE REPRESENTD BY STATE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA, HIGH COURT BUILDING, BENGALURU-560001.
2. SRI. LINGAIAH S/O LATE. SOMAIAH, AGED ABOUT 69 YEARS, R/AT NO.1417, 1ST BLOCK, SIR M.VISHWESHWARAIAH LAYOUT KENGERI SATELLITE TOWN BENGALURU-560060.
… RESPONDENTS (BY SRI: NASRULLA KHAN, HCGP FOR R1) ---
THIS CRL.P IS FILED U/S.482 CR.P.C PRAYING TO QUASH THE CHARGE SHEET FILED BY THE RESPONDENT-HALAGURU P.S., MALAVALLI TALUK, MANDYA DISTRICT AGAINST THE PETITIONERS-ACCUSED NO.4,5,8 IN C.C.NO.1248/2013 PENDING ON THE FILE OF PRL. CIVIL JUDGE (Jr.Dn) AND JMFC, MALAVALLI.
THIS CRL.P COMING ON FOR ADMISSION THIS DAY, THE COURT MADE THE FOLLOWING:-
O R D E R Petitioners are accused Nos.4, 5 and 8 in Crime No.118/2013 of Halagur Police Station. The said case is registered based on the complaint lodged by the second respondent herein alleging that his daughter (wife of accused No.1) was ill-treated and harassed in the matrimonial home by her husband and other accused. It was also alleged that, at the time of marriage, accused Nos.1, 2 and 3 had demanded and received dowry from the complainant and thereafter, his daughter was harassed and ill-treated making additional demand for dowry. There are also allegations that between 13.06.2012 and 15.06.2012, accused Nos.1 and 2 came to the bedroom of his daughter and when she questioned them, they abused and threatened her.
2. After investigation, charge-sheet is laid against eight accused persons. The only allegation made against the present petitioners is that on 18.05.2012, after the Aashada Masa, when the complainant’s daughter went to the house of accused No.1, accused Nos.2, 3, 5 and 8 abused her, asking her as to how dare she came to the house of accused No.1 and asked her to walk away from the house. Except the said allegation, I do not find any other allegations in the entire charge-sheet making out the offences either under section 498A, 504, 506 read with section 149 Indian Penal Code or under sections 3 and 4 of Dowry Prohibition Act insofar as the present petitioners are concerned.
3. The above allegations, even if accepted as true, do not satisfy the ingredients of any of the above offences. That apart, except the interested testimony of the complainant’s daughter namely CW.2, no other supporting material is available on record to show that on the said date, the petitioners herein namely accused Nos.4, 5 and 8 were present in the house. Petitioners have taken up a specific plea that the petitioners are married persons and have been residing separately since more than 25 to 30 years and they had no intention or motive whatsoever either to threaten the petitioners or to commit any of the above offence. Having regard to the manner in which omnibus and general allegations are made against the petitioners implicating them in the alleged offence would indicate that the complainant has roped in the entire family members of accused No.1 out of spite and ill-will on account of matrimonial differences of his daughter with accused No.1 and her in-laws. In any case, the allegations made against the petitioners, apart from being frivolous and baseless, do not make out any of the offences alleged in the FIR. Therefore, in my view, the prosecution of the petitioners for the alleged offences is a sheer abuse of the process of court and in the said circumstance if these proceedings are allowed to continue, it would defeat the ends of justice insofar as petitioners are concerned.
For all these reasons, petition is allowed. The proceedings initiated against the petitioners, presently pending on the file of the learned Principal Civil Judge (Junior Division) and JMFC at Malavalli, Mandya district, in C.C.No.1248/2013 insofar as the petitioners herein namely accused Nos.4, 5 and 8 are concerned, are hereby quashed.
In view of the disposal of the petition, I.A.No.1/2016 does not survive for consideration and the same is also disposed of.
Sd/- JUDGE Bss