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7. The company petition in CP No.1/2010 was filed before CLB (now pending before NCLT) on 10.03.2010. In the said company petition, documents No.1 to 54 have been filed. The advance copy of the company petition and the copies of the documents have been served upon the appellant-Company. Document No.1-Internal Audit Report of the appellant Company was filed in the civil suits filed by respondents No.12 to 16 challenging the revocation of the five trusts created by MPB and PDB. Alleging theft and misappropriation of all the documents No.1 to 54, the appellant Company filed the criminal complaint under Sections 379, 403, 411 read with Section 120B IPC against respondents No.1 to 16 and in the said complaint, appellant was represented by Shri Samir Ganguly who is the Vice-President (Legal) of the appellant-company. The gravamen of the allegations in the complaint is that copies of 54 documents were used before the Company Law Board (CLB) in C.P. No.1 of 2010 filed by respondents No.1 to 5 and Birla Education Trust represented by respondent No.6. Copy of one such document viz., Internal Audit Report of Chanderia Unit of the appellant Company has been filed along with the interlocutory applications filed by respondents No.13 to 16 in the civil suits which were filed challenging the revocation of trusts and for recovery of properties vested in the trust.

Before making the complaint, the complainant-appellant had conducted an internal enquiry to find out how these documents reached the respondents.

10. These documents have at all times been kept at the registered office of the appellant-Birla Buildings. These documents have restricted access and are meant for the consumption of designated and specified individuals only. These documents include intra-company correspondence, internal audit reports, agreements etc. in relation to operations of the Company. The appellant-complainant alleges that respondents No.1 to 9 and 12 to 16 gained access to the Internal Audit Report and other documents unauthorizedly and illegally with the aid of respondent No.10-Birla Buildings Limited and respondent No.11-S. Chakrabarty, CEO who are in-charge of upkeep of the building in which the office of the appellant-complainant is situated.

15. On behalf of the appellant, Mr. C.A. Sundaram, learned senior counsel submitted that the appellant discharged the initial burden placed upon it by adducing pre-summoning evidence by examining two witnesses and based upon the averments in the complaint and the statement of witnesses Shri Samir Ganguly and P.B. Dinesh, the Magistrate satisfied himself that there are sufficient grounds for proceeding against the accused and the High Court rightly held that there was no irregularity in the procedure followed by the Magistrate in issuing process against the respondents. The learned senior counsel submitted that respondents No.1 to 9 have produced the documents before the Company Law Board and respondents No.12 to 16 have filed document No.1-Internal Audit Report which are highly confidential documents and having not disclosed the source for the accusation/possession of the documents, prima facie case in dishonest removal of the documents have been made out and the Magistrate rightly found that there are sufficient grounds for proceeding against the respondents/accused and took the cognizance of the offences under Sections 380, 411 and 120-B IPC.

70. Admittedly, documents No.1 to 54 including the Document No.1-Internal Audit Report of Chanderia unit of the appellant Company has been filed by the respondents in the company petition. These documents are intra-company correspondence, internal audit reports, agreements, etc. in relation to the operations of the appellant Company. Admittedly, these documents have been produced in the company petition by the shareholders of the appellant-Company to substantiate their case of oppression and mismanagement by respondent No.17 and for vindication of their rights. As discussed infra in the facts and circumstances of the case in hand, in our view taking away of the documents temporarily and using them in the pending litigations between the parties would not amount to theft.