Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)
Paras Khaitan vs Smt. Susmita Rongali & Ors on 8 July, 2022
08-07-2022 IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA
Item no.5 Special Criminal Jurisdiction
Subrata
CRLCP No.4 of 2021
Paras Khaitan
-vs-
Smt. Susmita Rongali & Ors.
Mr. Satarup Banerjee
Mr. Bratin Kumar Dey
Mr. Sariful Haque ...for the petitioner
Mr. Sumanta Ganguly ... for respondent no.4
Mr. Sabir Ahmed ...for respondent no.5 This is an application alleging criminal contempt.
The foundation for this case to be instituted in this court is to be found in a judgement of the Supreme Court dated 2nd July 2014 in the case of Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar & Anr, reported in (2014) 8 SCC 273 (Criminal Appeal No.1277 of 2014)/[Special Leave Petition (CRL) No.9127 of 2013] In that case, the Supreme Court was dealing with the power of police officers to arrest the accused without warrant. Inter alia, the allegation was that the police were arresting offenders unnecessarily and indiscriminately in a routine manner. The Supreme Court, while laying down the considerations and principles to govern the arrest of any accused without warrant in a congnizable case, held: -
"(7) Failure to comply with the directions aforesaid shall apart from rendering the police officers concerned liable for departmental action, they shall also be liable to be punished for contempt of court to be instituted before High Court having territorial jurisdiction."
Here, the allegation against the alleged contemners is as follows.
2On 5th July 2019, an FIR was lodged in Uditnagar police station, district Sundergarh, Rourkella, Odisha against the petitioner accusing him of offences under sections 498A/307/506/34 IPC read with sections 4/6 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. It seems, later, the accusation under section 307 IPC was dropped.
Mr Banerjee, learned advocate appearing for the petitioner, submits that the alleged offences in the FIR would only result in the petitioner's imprisonment for a maximum period of seven years.
In those circumstances, a notice under section 41A CrPC and compliance with the procedure thereunder were mandatory before the police could take a decision to arrest the petitioner without warrant.
The petitioner's case is that the alleged contemners in violation of the law took him into custody from his residence at Rajarhat, North 24 Parganas, West Bengal and thereafter sent him on transit remand to Odisha. This, according to learned advocate for the petitioner, is contempt of the said order of the Supreme Court.
Learned advocate for the fourth respondent submits that the section 41A CrPC notice was issued to the petitioner and that it was refused by him.
Learned advocate for the petitioner denies this assertion.
On the other hand, learned advocates for some of the alleged contemners raised the point of jurisdiction of this court to entertain this application. They submitted that the petitioner was arrested on the basis of a complaint under section 307 IPC.
As far as the jurisdiction point is concerned, the said direction in the above Supreme Court order calls for interpretation.
Normally, the application for contempt, whether civil or criminal, of a court is filed in that court. Contempt, according to the 3 said order of the Supreme Court, takes place by certain action or inaction by police officers with regard to their power of arrest. In that perspective to determine which court has jurisdiction, the place of occurrence of the cause of action or part of it is to be taken into account. Here, the cause of action has arisen partly in Odisha and partly in West Bengal. Therefore, as far as this contempt application is concerned, prima facie, this court has jurisdiction.
Considering the allegations in this application and defence to it raised by learned advocate for some of the respondents, we are of the view that this court shall consider issuance of a rule after affidavits are exchanged by the alleged contemners responding to the specific allegations against them.
Affidavit-in-opposition to be filed by 22nd July 2022; affidavit- in-reply by 5th August 2022.
List this contempt application for consideration on 12th August 2022.
[I.P. Mukerji, J] [Subhendu Samanta, J] 4