Gujarat High Court
Chetnaben Rahematulla Panjvani vs State Of Gujarat on 22 August, 2024
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024
undefined
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CRIMINAL MISC.APPLICATION (FOR QUASHING & SET ASIDE
FIR/ORDER) NO. 15358 of 2015
==========================================================
CHETNABEN RAHEMATULLA PANJVANI & ANR.
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT & ANR.
==========================================================
Appearance:
MR PRAVIN GONDALIYA(1974) for the Applicant(s) No. 1,2
HCLS COMMITTEE(4998) for the Respondent(s) No. 2
MR PV PATADIYA(5924) for the Respondent(s) No. 2
MR. SOHAM JOSHI, LD. ADDL. PUBLIC PROSECUTOR for the
Respondent(s) No. 1
==========================================================
CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE DIVYESH A. JOSHI
Date : 22/08/2024
ORAL ORDER
1. By this application under section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure,1973, the applicants seek to invoke the inherent powers of this Court praying for quashing of the first information report being C.R. No.I-69 of 2015 registered before the Siddhpur Police Station at Patan for the offence punishable under sections 498(A), 323, 504, 506(2) and 114 of the Indian Penal Code.
2. The case of the prosecution may be summarized as under;
2.1 The respondent No.2-original complainant has filed the impugned FIR, inter alia, alleging that she got married with the accused No.1, namely, Nikhil Rehmatulla Panjvani 17 years ago as per the rites and rituals of their community and out of Page 1 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined the said wedlock, one daughter, namely, Priyas was born, aged about 16 years. It is further alleged that the accused No.1 happens to be the husband of the complainant, the accused No.2 happens to be the divorced sister-in-law of the complainant and accused No.3 is the son of the accused No.2. She further alleged that after the marriage, she went to her matrimonial home and started residing there. Initially, she was being treated well, however, after some time, the accused No.1 started giving mental and physical torture to her upon keeping doubt on her. The accused No.1 also demanded dowry from her. It is also alleged that the accused No.2 was a divorced lady and, therefore, she often come to reside at the matrimonial house of the complainant at Siddhpur along with the accused No.3 and doing business of sale and purchase of land along with her husband. She used to reside there for quite long time and instigating the accused No.1 against her, due to which, the accused No.1 got enraged and started beating her. It is also alleged that due to such incessant torture and harassment at the end of the accused persons, once the complainant tried to end her life by cutting the vein of her wrist. With this sort of allegations, the impugned FIR has been filed.
3. Learned advocate, Mr. Pravin Gondaliya appearing for the applicants submitted that the applicant no.1 is sister-in-law and applicant no.2 is her son. Learned advocate Mr. Gondaliya further submitted that the present FIR is nothing but a sheer abuse of process of law as no offence much less the offence alleged against the accused Nos.2 and 3 in the FIR is made out and the same has been filed just with a view to harass the Page 2 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined present applicants. He further submitted that even if the allegations levelled in the FIR are believed to be true and correct without admitting it, the same do not disclose commission of any offence and are vague and general in nature. Learned advocate Mr. Gondaliya also submitted that in the FIR itself, it is stated that the applicants herein were shifted to Delhi in the year 2013 and occasionally visited the matrimonial house of the complainant. The applicants herein are residing separately at Noida where the applicant No.1 is doing the job. They never resided with the accusede No.1 under one roof at Siddhpur. Learned advocate Mr. Gondaliya further submitted that even the house where the accused No.1 and the complainant were residing belonged to the applicant No.1 and she allowed her brother and the complainant to reside there after their marriage and now having apprehension of being asked to vacate the said house, with a mala fide intention and an oblique motive, the impugned FIR has been filed by the complainant as she does not want to vacate the said house.
4. Learned advocate Mr. Gondaliya submitted that if the Hon'ble Court would go through the contents of the FIR, in that event, it would be found out that no specific incident is mentioned with regard to mental and physical harassment meted out to her by the applicants herein and general and vague allegations are made without any supporting material and, therefore the FIR is nothing but a gross abuse and misuse of the process of the Court and only on that count, the present application may be allowed and the impugned FIR may be quashed. Moreover, after the filing of the impugned FIR, the Page 3 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined applicants approached this Court by filing the present application and obtained order of stay, however, the investigation was proceeded against the accused No.1- husband and trial has also been commenced, and ultimately, at the end of trial, the accused No.1 has been acquitted by the trial court. Learned advocate Mr. Gondaliya, therefore, submitted that considering the above stated factual aspects as well as the principle of law laid down by the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of State of Haryana Vs. Bhajan Lal, reported in AIR 1992 SC 604 as well as in case of R.P. Kapur Vs. State of Punjab, reported in AIR 1960 SC 866 : 1960 Cri LJ 1239, the impugned FIR is required to be quashed and set aside. It is, therefore, urged that the present application may be allowed.
5. Learned APP, Mr. Joshi has opposed the grant of present application with a vehemence and submitted that the ingredients of the alleged offences are made out and looking to the allegations made in the FIR, it clearly appears that the applicants have committed alleged offences. It is, therefore, urged that the present application may not be allowed.
6. Learned advocate, Mr. P.V. Patadiya appearing for the respondent no.2 has also opposed the present application with a vehemence and submitted that if the Hon'ble Court would make a cursory glance upon the allegations leveled in the FIR, in that event, it would be found that the applicants have committed alleged offences and specific role of each accused is clearly spelt out. Learned advocate Mr. Patadiya further submitted that after registration of the FIR, immediately the applicants have approached this Court and obtained an order Page 4 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined of stay in their favour, as a result of which, the investigation could not be proceeded further. Learned advocate, therefore, urged that this application may not be entertained and the investigation may be permitted to be carried out so that evidence against the applicants can be collected
7. Having heard the learned counsel appearing for the parties and having considered the materials on record, the only question that falls for my consideration is whether I should quash the complaint.
8. It is now well settled that the power under Section 482 of the Code has to be exercised sparingly, carefully and with caution, only where such exercise is justified by the tests laid down in the Section itself. It is also well settled that Section 482 of the Code does not confer any new power on the High Court but only saves the inherent power, which the Court possessed before the enactment of the Criminal Procedure Code. There are three circumstances under which the inherent jurisdiction may be exercised, namely (i) to give effect to an order under the Code, (ii) to prevent abuse of the process of Court, and (iii) to otherwise secure the ends of justice.
9. The investigation of an offence is the field exclusively reserved for the Police Officers, whose powers in that field are unfettered, so long as the power to investigate into the cognizable offence is legitimately exercised in strict compliance with the provisions under Chapter XII of the Code. While exercising powers under Section 482 of the Code, the Court does not function as a Court of appeal or Page 5 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined revision. As noted above, the inherent jurisdiction under the Section, although wide, yet should be exercised sparingly, carefully and with caution and only when such exercise is justified by the tests specifically laid down in the Section itself. It is to be exercised ex debito justitiae to do real and substantial justice for the administration of which alone courts exist.
10. Authority of the court exists for advancement of justice and if any attempt is made to abuse that authority so as to produce injustice, the court has power to prevent such abuse. It would be an abuse of process of the court to allow any action which would result in injustice and prevent promotion of justice. In exercise of the powers court would be justified to quash any proceeding if it finds that initiation or continuance of it amounts to abuse of the process of court or quashing of these proceedings would otherwise serve the ends of justice. When no offence is disclosed by the complaint, the court may examine the question of fact. When a complaint is sought to be quashed, it is permissible to look into the materials to assess what the complainant has alleged and whether any offence is made out even if the allegations are accepted in toto.
11. In R.P. Kapur v. State of Punjab, (AIR 1960 SC 866) the apex Court summarized some categories of cases where inherent power can, and should be exercised to quash the proceedings.
"(i) where it manifestly appears that there is a legal bar against the institution or continuance e.g. Page 6 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined want of sanction;
ii) where the allegations in the first information report or complaint taken at its face value and accepted in their entirety do not constitute the offence alleged;
(iii) where the allegations constitute an offence, but there is no legal evidence adduced or the evidence adduced clearly or manifestly fails to prove the charge."
12. The Supreme Court, in the case of State of A.P. v. Vangaveeti Nagaiah, reported in AIR 2009 SC 2646, interpreted clause (iii) referred to above, observing thus:
"6. In dealing with the last category, it is important to bear in mind the distinction between a case where there is no legal evidence or where there is evidence which is clearly inconsistent with the accusations made, and a case where there is legal evidence which, on appreciation, may or may not support the accusations. When exercising jurisdiction under Section 482 of the Code, the High Court would not ordinarily embark upon an enquiry whether the evidence in question is reliable or not or whether on a reasonable appreciation of it accusation would not be sustained. That is the function of the trial Judge. Judicial process no doubt should not be an instrument of oppression, or, needless harassment. Court should be circumspect and judicious in exercising discretion and should take all relevant facts and circumstances into consideration before issuing process, lest it would be an instrument in the hands of a private complainant to unleash vendetta to harass any person needlessly. At the same time the Section is not an instrument handed over to an accused to shortcircuit a prosecution and bring about its sudden death. The scope of exercise of power under Section 482 of the Code and the categories of cases where the High Court may exercise its power under it relating to cognizable offences to prevent abuse of Page 7 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice were set out in some detail by this Court in State of Haryana v. Bhajan Lal [1992 Supp. (1) SCC 335].A note of caution was, however, added that the power should be exercised sparingly and that too in rarest of rare cases.
The illustrative categories indicated by this Court are as follows:
"(1) Where the allegations made in the first information report or the complaint, even if they are taken at their face value and accepted in their entirety do not prima facie constitute any offence or make out a case against the accused.
(2) Where the allegations in the first information report and other materials, if any, accompanying the FIR do not disclose a cognizable offence, justifying an investigation by police officers under Section 156(1) of the Code except under an order of a Magistrate within the purview of Section 155(2) of the Code.
(3) Where the uncontroverted allegations made in the F.I.R. or complaint and the evidence collected in support of the same do not disclose the commission of any offence and make out a case against the accused.
(4) Where the allegations in the F.I.R. do not constitute a cognizable offence but constitute only a noncognizable offence, no investigation is permitted by a Police Officer without an order of a Magistrate as contemplated under Section 155(2) of the Code.
(5) Where the allegations made in the FIR or complaint are so absurd and inherently improbable on the basis of which no prudent person can ever reach a just conclusion that there is sufficient ground for proceeding against the accused.
(6) Where there is an express legal bar engrafted in any of the provisions of the Code or the Page 8 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined concerned Act (under which a criminal proceeding is instituted) to the institution and continuance of the proceedings and/or where there is a specific provision in the Code or the concerned Act, providing efficacious redress for the grievance of the aggrieved party.
(7) Where a criminal proceeding is manifestly attended with mala fide and/or where the proceeding is maliciously instituted with an ulterior motive for wreaking vengeance on the accused and with a view to spite him due to private and personal grudge."
13. A plain reading of the FIR reveals that the allegations levelled by the respondent No.2 are quite vague, general and sweeping, specifying no instances of criminal conduct. Although the respondent No.2 is much more annoyed with her husband, with an obvious motive, yet has arrayed the sister and nephew of the husband residing and settled at Delhi. If a person is made to face a criminal trial on some general and sweeping allegations without bringing on record any specific instances of criminal conduct, it is nothing but abuse of process of the court. The Court owes a duty to subject the allegations levelled in the complaint to a thorough scrutiny to find out prima facie whether there is any grain of truth in the allegations or whether they are made only with the sole object of involving certain individuals in a criminal charge. Moreover, the accused No.1-husband, after a full-fledged trial, has already been acquitted by the trial from all the charges levelled against him. Therefore, in my opinion, continuation of the present proceedings against the applicants, would not now serve any purpose.
Page 9 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined
14. In Preeti Gupta v. State of Jharkhand, reported in 2010 Criminal Law Journal 4303(1), the Supreme Court observed the following:
"28. It is a matter of common knowledge that unfortunately matrimonial litigation is rapidly increasing in our country. All the courts in our country including this court are flooded with matrimonial cases. This clearly demonstrates discontent and unrest in the family life of a large number of people of the society.
29. The courts are receiving a large number of cases emanating from section 498A of the Indian Penal Code which reads as under :
"498A. Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty.Whoever, being the husband or the relative of the husband of a woman, subjects such woman to cruelty shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine.
Explanation. For the purposes of this section, 'cruelty' means :
(a) any wilful conduct which is of such a nature as is likely to drive the woman to commit suicide or to cause grave injury or danger to life, limb or health (whether mental or physical) of the woman; or
(b) harassment of the woman where such harassment is with a view to coercing her or any person related to her to meet any unlawful demand for any property or valuable security or is on account of failure by her or any person related to her to meet such demand."
30. It is a matter of common experience that most of these complaints under section 498A IPC are filed in the heat of the moment over trivial issues without proper Page 10 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined deliberations. We come across a large number of such complaints which are not even bona fide and are filed with oblique motive. At the same time, rapid increase in the number of genuine cases of dowry harassment are also a matter of serious concern.
31. The learned members of the Bar have enormous social responsibility and obligation to ensure that the social fiber of family life is not ruined or demolished. They must ensure that exaggerated versions of small incidents should not be reflected in the criminal complaints. Majority of the complaints are filed either on their advice or with their concurrence. The learned members of the Bar who belong to a noble profession must maintain its noble traditions and should treat every complaint under section 498A as a basic human problem and must make serious endeavour to help the parties in arriving at an amicable resolution of that human problem. They must discharge their duties to the best of their abilities to ensure that social fiber, peace and tranquility of the society remains intact. The members of the Bar should also ensure that one complaint should not lead to multiple cases.
32. Unfortunately, at the time of filing of the complaint the implications and consequences are not properly visualized by the complainant that such complaint can lead to insurmountable harassment, agony and pain to the complainant, accused and his close relations.
33. The ultimate object of justice is to find out the truth and punish the guilty and protect the innocent. To find out the truth is a herculean task in majority of these complaints. The tendency of implicating husband and all his immediate relations is also not uncommon. At times, even after the conclusion of criminal trial, it is difficult to ascertain the real truth. The courts have to be extremely careful and cautious in dealing with these complaints and must take pragmatic realities into consideration while dealing with matrimonial cases. The allegations of harassment of husband's close relations who had been living in different cities and never Page 11 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined visited or rarely visited the place where the complainant resided would have an entirely different complexion. The allegations of the complaint are required to be scrutinized with great care and circumspection. Experience reveals that long and protracted criminal trials lead to rancour, acrimony and bitterness in the relationship amongst the parties. It is also a matter of common knowledge that in cases filed by the complainant if the husband or the husband's relations had to remain in jail even for a few days, it would ruin the chances of amicable settlement altogether. The process of suffering is extremely long and painful.
34. Before parting with this case, we would like to observe that a serious relook of the entire provision is warranted by the legislation. It is also a matter of common knowledge that exaggerated versions of the incident are reflected in a large number of complaints. The tendency of over implication is also reflected in a very large number of cases.
35. The criminal trials lead to immense sufferings for all concerned. Even ultimate acquittal in the trial may also not be able to wipe out the deep scars of suffering of ignominy. Unfortunately a large number of these complaints have not only flooded the courts but also have led to enormous social unrest affecting peace, harmony and happiness of the society. It is high time that the legislature must take into consideration the pragmatic realities and make suitable changes in the existing law. It is imperative for the legislature to take into consideration the informed public opinion and the pragmatic realities in consideration and make necessary changes in the relevant provisions of law. We direct the Registry to send a copy of this judgment to the Law Commission and to the Union Law Secretary, Government of India who may place it before the Hon'ble Minister for Law and Justice to take appropriate steps in the larger interest of the society."
15. In the result, this application succeeds and is allowed.
Page 12 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/15358/2015 ORDER DATED: 22/08/2024 undefined The first information report being C.R. No.I-69 of 2015 registered before the Siddhpur Police Station at Patan is hereby ordered to be quashed. All consequential proceedings arising from the same also stands terminated. Rule is made absolute.
Direct service is permitted.
(DIVYESH A. JOSHI,J) VAHID Page 13 of 13 Uploaded by ABDULVAHID A SHAIKH(HC00955) on Thu Sep 05 2024 Downloaded on : Fri Sep 06 22:16:31 IST 2024