Bombay High Court
Maulik Kotak And Ors vs The State Of Maharashtra And Anr on 18 November, 2016
Bench: V.K. Jadhav
1 Cri wp 428.2007.odt
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
BENCH AT AURANGABAD
CRIMINAL WRIT PETITION NO. 428 OF 2007
1. Shri Maulik Kotak
age adult, occupation printer,
Publisher.
2. Shri Bharat Kapadia
age adult occu. Asst. Publisher and
editor.
3. Shri Dnyanesh Maharao,
age adult, occu. executive editor.
4. Shri Bipin Kotak,
age adult, occ. Director.
5. Shri Ajit Popat
age adult occ. Reporter.
6. Shri Mahesh Shah
age adult, occ. Reporter.
7. Smt Jyoti Rawal,
age adult, occu. Reporter.
Petitioners 1 to 7 having their
address as
c/o Weekly Chitralekha
age 62, Vaju Kotak Marg,
Mumbai 400 001. Petitioners.
VERSUS
1. The State of Maharashtra
2. Dr. Shri Balaji Pita Bansilalji Toshniwal,
age 52 yrs, Occ.Agriculturist,
residing at Hadgaon, Tq. Hadgaon,
Dist Nanded. Respondents.
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2 Cri wp 428.2007.odt
...
APP for Respondents: Mr Bharaswadkar
...
CORAM : V.K. JADHAV, J.
Dated: November 18, 2016
...
ORAL JUDGMENT :-
1. None present for the petitioner and respondent
no.2.
2. By way of this petition, the petitioners are seeking
quashment and setting aside of the order dated
20.8.2002 passed by the Judicial Magistrate First Class,
Hadgaon District Nanded in Criminal Case no.946/2002
and also seeking dismissal of the complaint filed by
respondent no.2.
3. Brief facts, giving rise to the present writ petition
are as follows :-
Respondent no.2 herein filed a complaint before
the Magistrate bearing Criminal Case no.946/2002
against the present petitioners for having committed an
offence punishable u/s 500 read with section 34 of IPC.
The petitioners are working in a weekly named and
styled as "Chitralekha" published in Marathi and
3 Cri wp 428.2007.odt
Gujrathi languages. Petitioners are working in the said
weekly "Chitralekha" in different capacities. On
1.7.2002 one article was published in a weekly
Chitralekha focusing on Pandurang Shastri Aathvale
who was head of Svadhyaya Parivar. Respondent no.2 is
member of said Svadhyay Pariwar and he is one of the
follower found said article defamatory and thus
approached the court by filing private complaint as
aforesaid. Learned J.M.F.C. Hadgaon by considering the
allegations made in the complaint issued a show cause
notice to the applicants-original accused directing them
to appear before the court on 30.9.2002 to explain as to
why process should not be issued against them. By
filing this petition, applicants thus challenged said show
cause notice on various grounds.
4. This petition was filed before the Principal Seat at
Bombay and it was transferred to this Bench as
Hadgaon is situated in Nanded District. After transfer,
notices were issued to the petitioners however, they
failed to appear in the present criminal writ petition
even though notices were accepted by said weekly
4 Cri wp 428.2007.odt
Chitralekha on their behalf.
5. The learned APP submits that, in response to the
show cause notice issued by the Magistrate, the
applicants can raise all grounds as raised in the present
writ petition before the Magistrate and it is pre-mature
at this stage to challenge show cause notice when
applicants-accused failed to appear before the court and
submit their explanation to the allegations made in the
complaint.
6. It appears from the order passed by the learned
Magistrate that, Magistrate has not issued process
directly against applicants for having committed an
offence punishable u/s 500 r/w 34 of IPC but taken
care to issue show cause notice to them to submit their
explanation to the allegations made in the complaint.
Thus, the petitioners-original accused can submit before
the Magistrate either in person or through their counsel
their explanations to the allegations made in the
complaint and Magistrate may pass an appropriate
order in accordance with law. With these observations,
5 Cri wp 428.2007.odt
criminal writ petition is disposed off. All points kept
open. Petitioners in response to show cause notice
issued by the Magistrate may submit their explanation
to the Magistrate and learned magistrate shall pass an
appropriate order in accordance with law. Rule is made
absolute in above terms.
ig ( V.K. JADHAV, J. )
...
aaa/-
