Bombay High Court
Mohammed Zulfekharuddin vs The State Of Maharashtra & Ors. :: ... on 4 March, 2014
Bench: K.U. Chandiwal, V.M. Deshpande
G.A.Ghule
[P.A.[
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY.
BENCH AT AURANGABAD.
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION.
CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO.4354 OF 2013.
Mohammed Zulfekharuddin
s/o Mohammed Alinuddin Siddiqui. :: Applicant.
Versus
The State of Maharashtra & Ors. :: Non-Applicants.
Mangala w/o Kamlakar Yelnoorkar
ig :: Ori.Complainant.
Appearance =>
Mr. N.K. Kakade a/with Mr. Amol N. Kakade, Advocate for the
Applicant.
Mrs. S.G. Chincholkar, A.P.P. for the State of Maharashtra.
Mr. Yashoddep P. Deshmukh, Advocate for Respondent No.3.
CORAM : K.U. Chandiwal, &
V.M. Deshpande, JJ.
DATE : 4th March, 2014.
J U D G M E N T :- [ Per Court : V.M. Deshpande, J.] Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. Heard with consent of both the parties.
[2] By the present Criminal Application, the Applicant is seeking quashing of First Information Report bearing CR No.I 124/2012, dated 3rd November, 2012, registered with Satara Police Station, Aurangabad for the ::: Downloaded on - 11/03/2014 22:54:47 ::: 2/8 cri.appln. 4354.13 (04.03.14). FINAL.sxw offences punishable U/Section.s. 109, 114, 120(B), 468, 471, 419, 420, 201 read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, to the extent of present Applicant only.
[3] Few facts leading to the present Criminal Application can conveniently be narrated as under :-
[i] Non-Applicant No.3 - Sow. Mangala w/o Kamlakar Yelnoorkar lodged a report with Satara Police Station, Aurangabad, stating five persons have committed the offences, as enumerated in the said First Information Report. The present Applicant is shown as Accused No.2 in the said report.
[ii] Non-Applicant No.3 Sow. Mangala is the citizen of Great Britain. She resides there since last 36 years. Her brother Sharad Nandedkar is resident of Aurangabad. Said Shard suggested Non-Applicant No.3 to purchase a property situated at village Nakshatrawadi bearing land Gat No.27 admeasuring 40 Are.. Since it was suggested by her brother, Non-Applicant No.3 vide registered sale-deed dated 27th April, 2012 purchased the said immovable property from one Gopichand Harachand Jadhav resident of Gevrai Tanda for consideration of Rs.22,000/-. Necessary mutations were made in her name in the relevant revenue record of said land.
[iii] In the month of May, 2012 Sharad made telephonic call to Non-Applicant No.3, thereby, intimating her that public notice (tkghj izdV.k) is published in daily Marathi newspaper ::: Downloaded on - 11/03/2014 22:54:47 ::: 3/8 cri.appln. 4354.13 (04.03.14). FINAL.sxw "Divya Marathi" dated 27th April, 2012 in respect of the property owned by Non-Applicant No.3. It was intimated to her that, in the said public notice, it is mentioned that, she has entered into an agreement to sale (fodzhpk djkjukek @ bZlkj ikorh ) the said property to one Gopal Suryakant Waghmare and, therefore, said Waghmare has called the objections to the said Isar-pawati. Said notice is given by one Advocate Sampatrao Pukhraj Deoda. On receipt of this shocking information, Non-Applicant No.3 immediately contacted with the brother-in-law, who is Advocate by profession at Aurangabad and apprised him about the said public notice. According to the First Information Report, her brother-in-law intimated to her on telephone that he has obtained photostat copy of said fabricated and bogus Isar-pawati made in her name and it was informed that in the said document though name of Non-Applicant No.3 is appearing however, she is shown as widow and resident of village Kautha, Tal.&Dist. Nanded. Said "Isar-Pawati" dated 2nd April, 2012 is executed on the stamp paper of Rs.100/-. Said document is notarized one. In the said "Isar-Pawati" it has been stated that, Non- Applicant No.3 has agreed to sell the property for consideration of Rs.38 Lakhs to one Gopal Waghmare r/o Ramnagar, Telangi Lane, Jalana and out of the agreed sale consideration, she has received an amount of Rs.11 Lakhs, in cash. As per the said "Isar-Pawati" remaining amount was to be paid within a period of three months i.e. before 27th June, 2012.
[iv] On getting this information, NA No.3 came to India on 10th October, 2012 and met to her brother-in-law on 14th ::: Downloaded on - 11/03/2014 22:54:47 ::: 4/8 cri.appln. 4354.13 (04.03.14). FINAL.sxw October, 2012. He showed said alleged "Isar-Pawati" to her. On perusal of the same, Non-Applicant No.3 found that, said "Isar-Pawati" is bogus and fabricated one. She has further stated in the First Information Report that, Advocate S.P. Deoda never made any contact with her. She also expressed that, present Applicant in collusion with other accused has prepared said bogus and fabricated "Isar-Pawati".
[4] Since present Criminal Application is made on behalf of the Applicant, we shall be dealing First Information Report filed by Non-
Applicant No.3 to the extent of present Applicant only.
[5] The present Applicant is resident of Kazi Lane, Nanded. His age is 79 Years. He is an Advocate. He was appointed as Notary on 11th January, 1988 pursuance to the provisions of The Notaries Act, 1952 and The Notaries Rules, 1956. Lastly, the Government of Maharashtra vide communication dated 2nd February, 2010 addressed to the present Applicant, renewed his certificate of practice as Notary U/Section 5(2) of the Notaries Act, 1952 for a further period of five [5] years from 22nd January, 2010.
[6] Perusal of the entire First Information Report does not ascribe any positive act in preparation of said bogus and fabricated "Isar-Pawati".
Curiously, there are no allegations and/or statement made in the First Information Report that it is the Applicant, who was knowing that the said "Isar-Pawati" is bogus and / or fabricated one. A general statement is made in the First Information Report that the present Applicant in collusion with other persons, who are shown as accused in the said First Information Report, has prepared the said "Isar-Pawati".
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[7] On 21st November, 2012 present Applicant made communi
-cation to the Commissioner of Police, Aurangabad where-in he disclosed that, on getting information from Print Media, about the complaint lodged by Non-Applicant No.3, he found that, the agreement to sale in question was notarized by him on 2nd April, 2012. He has pointed out that the parties to the said agreement were duly identified by one Mr. Ziyauddin, Advocate from Nanded and thereafter he notarized said document. He also pointed out that the act done by him was in the discharge of his duty as a Notary Public and, therefore, he cannot be prosecuted except with the previous sanction. Apart from the said, he expressed that always he is ready to assist the persons, who wants the lawful and legal assistance from him.
[8] Nothing is placed on record as to what happened to that communication. Be that as it may be, in the present matter, apart from the general statement made in the First Information Report, there is nothing against the present Applicant, as observed in the preceding paragraphs. The Applicant, is an Advocate and also Notary Public. It is his duty to notarize the documents after necessary requirement are complied with, after observing that the document is in order, the executant is present, the witnesses are present etc. Moreover, executant and witnesses to the disputed document are duly identified by Advocate Mr. Ziyauddin. Therefore, there was no occasion for the present Applicant to raise any suspicion about identification of parties, in absence of any contrary record available before him. His job was only to notarize the document placed before him. The same has been done by him. Thus, the act of notarizing the said document was an act done by him while discharging his duty as such Notary Public.
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[9] First Information Report is under section 120(B) of the Indian
Penal Code, 1860. However, there is no prima facie evidence in respect of it to attract the said Section. Documentary evidence only show that, the Applicant has notarized the document submitted before him by the parties, who were duly identified by Mr. Ziyauddin, Advocate from Nanded. It will be useful to refer the decision of Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Hiralal Jain V/s. Delhi Administration, reported in AIR 1972 S.C. 2598.
[10] At this stage, it will be useful to have the survey of provisions of the Notaries Act, 1952. Sub Section (b) of Section 2 defines "instrument" which reads thus :-
"instrument" includes every document by which any right or liability is, or purports to be, created, transferred, modified, limited, extended, suspended, extinguished or recorded.
Sub Sec.(d) of Sec.2 defines "notary", which reads thus :-
"notary' means a person appointed as such under this Act: provided that for a period of two years from the commencement of this Act it shall include also a person who, before such commencement was appointed a notary public under the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 {XXVI of 1881], and is, immediately before such commencement, in practice in any part of India, Provided further that in relation to the State of Jammu and Kashmir the said period of two years shall be commuted from the date on which this Act comes into force in that State.
Section 3 empowers the Central and the State Government to appoint as notaries, any legal practitioners or other persons who possess such qualifications as may be prescribed. Section 8 deals with functions of ::: Downloaded on - 11/03/2014 22:54:47 ::: 7/8 cri.appln. 4354.13 (04.03.14). FINAL.sxw notaries. The document in question is within the ambit of sub section (a) of Section 8 of the Notaries Act. Section 9 creates a bar that, without a certificate to be enforced a person is barred from practicing as a Notary. Selection 12 deals with a penalty for falsely representing to a be a notary and if it is found so, he is liable to be punished. The Notaries Act, 1952 contains Section 13 which deals cognizance of the offence. Said section reads as under :-
13. Cognizance of offence.- (1) No court shall take cognizance of any offence committed by a notary in the exercise or purported exercise of his functions under this Act save upon complaint in writing made by an officer authorized by the Central Government or a State Government by general or special order in this behalf.
(2) No magistrate other than a presidency magistrate or a magistrate of the first class shall try an office punishable under this Act.
[11] Thus, once its is found that, there is nothing in the First Information Report to show that, there was any concert between the Applicant and other accused who are named in the First Information Report and Advocate Mr. Ziyauddin, in absence of these material particulars, it is clear that the Applicant, who has notarized the document after due identification, cannot said to have committed any wrong, which attracts penal provisions, as sought to be pressed into service against him, in the said First Information Report. Further it is clear that, he has notarized the document while discharging his duty as a Notary. In that view of the matter, we find that, this is fit case, wherein this Court should exercise its inherent powers U/Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 to prevent abuse of the process of law by issuing necessary directions to quash the First Information Report bearing CR No. I 124/2012, to the extent of present Applicant only.
::: Downloaded on - 11/03/2014 22:54:47 :::8/8 cri.appln. 4354.13 (04.03.14). FINAL.sxw [12] Hence, we proceed to pass the following order :-
ORDER
(i) First Information Report dated 3rd November, 2012, bearing CR No.I 124/2012, registered with Satara Police Station, Aurangabad for the offences punishable U/Section.s.
109, 114, 120(B), 468, 471, 419, 420, 201 read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, is quashed and set aside, to the extent of Applicant - Mohammed Zulfekharuddin s/o Mohammed Alinuddin Siddiqui only.
(ii) Rule. Rule made absolute in above terms.
(iii) Criminal Application stands allowed.
(iv) We make it clear that any observations made in this order
shall not be construed as an expression of any opinion on the merits or demerits of the case; except examining the case of present Applicant and at the time of hearing of the trial, appropriate decision will be taken, uninfluenced by these observations.
(V.M. DESHPANDE, J.) (K.U. CHANDIWAL, J.)
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