Punjab-Haryana High Court
Tara Singh, Retd. Sub-Registrar vs The Saggal Co-Operative Agricultural ... on 7 September, 1993
Equivalent citations: 1994CRILJ1465
ORDER J.B. Garg, J.
1. Tara Singh, Sub-Registrar (Retd), Dasuya, District Hosiarpur, has moved the present petition under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and challeged the summoning order passed by Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate, Dasuya on 20-10-1990.
2. Briefly, the facts as alleged are that Malkiat Singh had been working as Secretary of the complainant Co-operative Society and Shankar Singh, accused No. 2, was a surety with regard to the aforesaid Secretary. By invoking Section 65 of the Punjab Co-operative Societies Act, 1961, immovable properties belonging to Malkiat Singh, Secretary, and Shankar Singh surety, were attached and intimation regarding it was also conveyed to Tara Singh, accused No. 4, the then Sub Registrar, Dasuya. However, sale deeds of the . immovable properties were executed on 29-1-1990 in connivance with the aforesaid Sub-Registrar and it was in these circumstances that the petitioner - Sub Registrar has also been summoned by the trial Court at Dasuya as mentioned above.
3. The petitioner has come forward to this Court and claimed that in his capacity as Sub Registrar he was a public servant and he could not be prosecuted without sanction of the State Government under Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. It shall be useful to refer to a receipt Annexure P-5 which is reproduced as under:-
Receipt Cause of receipt of Rs. 20,000/- Received Rs. 20,000/- the half of which comes to Rs. 10,000/- in respect of land measruing 13 K 15 Marias comprised in Khasra No. 3 Rs. 21,20,20/2,19,22/1 situated in village Bhatti, Had Bast No. 140, Tehsil Dasuya which was attached by the Assistant Registrar Co-operative Societies Dasuya, in cash from Shri Shanker Singh son of Roor Singh village Sarihpur and clearance of the land has been given hereby. This reciept has been written in token of the proof.
2-2-1990.
Witnesses: Recipient Sd/ Iqbal Singh Sd/ Mehar Singh Sarpanch President, Saggal Co-operative Agricultural Sd/ Ajaib Singh Service Society Ltd." Member Panchayat, Sarihpur.
This receipt was executed by the President of the Saggal Co-operative Agriculral Service Society Ltd. and is attested by Sarpanch as well as Member Panchayat. When this receipt was shown to the Sub Registrar he naturally believed that no debt was outstanding against the vendor. It was after persual of this receipt that the Sub Registrar in discharge of his duties bona fide registered the sale deed in question. The act of registration of the document in the circumstances of the case was in discharge of the duties by public servant specially appointed or nominated for this purpose. If the petitioner wants to prosecute the Sub Registrar mainly under Sections 81 and 82 of he Indian Registration Act it was essential to obtain the sanction of the appointing authority, in the circumstances of the case.
4. The learned counsel for the respondent has referred to Ramesh Pal v. Ajhar Alam, 1984 (1) Recent CR 511 : (1985 Cri LJ (NOC) 10 (P & H) which was also referred to in the trial Court but in that case, the issue in question was inflicting or getting inflicted torture on a person by a police officer during the course of investigation and the facts were distinguishable. In the case now in hand, there is a reasonable connection between the office of Sub Registrar held by the petitioner Tara Singh and the discharge of his official duties in registering a sale deed. The petitioner has also set up a plea that there was also a difference in the identity of the land ordered to be attached by the Assistant Registrar, Cooperative Societies Dasuya under Section 65 of the Co-operative Societies Act, 1961 which relates to attachment before the award of the land alienated and for all these reasons it is held that the sanction for prosecution of the petitioner was essential and in the absence thereof, the present petition is accepted and the summoning order qua the petitioner only is quashed.