Allahabad High Court
Smt. Khushbu vs State Of U.P. And 4 Others on 23 August, 2023
Bench: Sadhna Rani (Thakur)
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD
?Neutral Citation No. - 2023:AHC:170280
Court No. - 84
Case :- CRIMINAL APPEAL No. - 5413 of 2021
Appellant :- Smt. Khushbu
Respondent :- State Of U.P. And 4 Others
Counsel for Appellant :- Ashish Singh
Counsel for Respondent :- G.A.
Hon'ble Mrs. Sadhna Rani (Thakur),J.
Heard learned counsel for the appellant, learned A.G.A. for the State and perused the record. No one has put in appearance on behalf of the opposite party nos. 2 to 5 despite of sufficient service of notice.
Present Criminal Appeal has been filed under Section 14-A(1) of SC/ST Act against the judgment and order dated 22.09.2021 passed by the Special Judge, SC/ST Act, District Meerut in Criminal Misc. Case No. 407 of 2021 (Smt. Khushbu Versus Gurmeet Singh and others) by means of which the learned Special Judge rejected the application under Section 156(3) Cr. P.C. filed by the appellant.
It is argued by the learned counsel for the appellant that regarding incident, appellant had gone to the police station for lodging report, but her report was not lodged and she had to move an application under Section 156(3) Cr. P.C. while the report of the opposite party nos. 2 was lodged at the police station.
From the perusal of the record, it is found that an application under Section 156 (3) Cr. P.C. was moved by the appellant on 10.09.2021 in the court Special Judge SC/ST Act and prayer was made that she belonged to scheduled caste community. On 04.09.2021 at about 08.30 hours she had gone outside her house to throw garbage. Gurmeet, who lives in front of her house, called her and when she reached near Gurmeet, he caught hold of her, tore her clothes and started doing absence activities with her, his sons Suni @ Kuljeet, Mani and his wife Kamaljeet Kaur also came on the spot and started hurling caste based words and abuses, they also tried to cause her death strangulating by dupatta. They also gave her threat of ousting her from that locality. They also gave her threat to make viral her obscene videos, which were prepared by Gurmeet. She was also given threat of her life. On her hue and cry, her husband Deepak, Kapil, Dharmendra, Shoraj and many other persons came and saved her. It is also the allegation that Gurmeet in a drunken state also molests the women passing by.
On this application, the trial court passed the impugned order dated 22.09.2021 and found that in the report summoned from the police station it had come that the same day it was the husband of the appellant, who had fired at Gurmeet-opposite party no.2. Her husband Deepak, Kapil and Banti thrashed Gurmeet and his family members, Gurmeet-opposite party no.2 had to lodge a first information report under Sections 147,148,149,323, 504, 506 and 307 I.P.C. under Case Crime No. 122 of 2021 regarding that incident.
The trial court opined the moving of applications by the appellant to be the misuse of the process of law and the application under Section 156(3) Cr. P.C. of the appellant was rejected.
From the perusal of the order of the trial court and the police report placed before this Court by the learned counsel for the appellant, the incident is dated 04.09.2021 both in the first information report lodged by Gurmeet and the application under Section 156 (3) Cr. P.C. moved by the appellant. The first information report was lodged by Gurmeet Singh against Deepak husband of the first informant, father-in-law, Kapil and Banti wherein the allegations against all these accused persons were of thrashing Gurmeet and his family members and there was also allegation that Deepak Husband of the appellant opened fire on Gurmeet Singh. It is mentioned in the police report that appellant never gave an application to the police to get her first information report lodged.
From the documents on record it transpires that on 04.09.2021 at about 8.00 hours some altercation took place between appellant- Khushbu and Gurmeet Singh. Who was the aggressor, shall be decided by the Court after hearing the case. As a cognizable offence has been mentioned in the application of the appellant against the named accused-persons, the trial court was under an obligation to get the first information report lodged on the basis of the allegations made in the application under Section 156 (3)Cr. P.C. of the appellant. The first information report of opposite party no.2 regarding the same incident was lodged at the police station concerned, cannot be a ground of rejecting the application of the appellant moved under Section 156 (3) Cr. P.C.
Criminal Appeal is allowed. Impugned order dated 22.09.2021 is set aside. Trial Court is directed to pass a fresh order on the application of the appellant under section 156(3) Cr. P.C.
Order Date :- 23.8.2023
T.S.
