Bombay High Court
Mandar S/O Mahesh Dhongdi vs The State Of Maharashtra, Thr. Pso ... on 13 April, 2022
Bench: V.M. Deshpande, Amit B. Borkar
1 APL523.22.odt
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
: NAGPUR BENCH : NAGPUR.
CRIMINAL APPLICATION [APL] NO. 523 OF 2022
APPLICANTS : Mandar S/o Mahesh Dhongdi,
Aged about 31 years, Occu. Private Service,
R/o Flat No. 203, Ved Residency,
Nilkamal Society, Besa, Nagpur.
VERSUS
NON-APPLICANTS : 1] State of Maharashtra,
through Police Station Officer,
Police Station, Bajaj Nagar, Nagpur.
2] Anushka D/o Yuvraj Meshram,
Aged about 19 years, Occu. Student,
R/o Plot No. 33, Near Pukraj Apartment,
Pratap Nagar, Rana Pratap Nagar,
Nagpur - 440022.
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Shri C. D. Rohankar, Advocate for the applicant
Shri M. K. Pathan, A. P .P. for the non-applicant no.1/State
Shri S. R. Dambhare, Advocate for the non-applicant no.2.
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CORAM : V. M. DESHPANDE and
AMIT B. BORKAR, JJ.
DATE : APRIL 13, 2022.
ORAL JUDGMENT (Per : Amit B. Borkar, J.)
1. Rule. Rule is made returnable forthwith. Heard finally
by consent of the parties.
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2. By this application under Section 482 of the Code of
Criminal Procedure, the applicant is challenging registration of the
first information report dated 28.12.2021 vide Crime No. 372/2021
and consequent Charge-sheet No. 1313/2022 dated 16.03.2022 filed
against him at the behest of non-applicant no.2 with non-applicant
no.1 - Police Station, Bajaj Nagar, Nagpur for the offence punishable
under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code.
3. The first information report in question came to be
registered against the applicant with accusation that the applicant
did the act which amounted to offending the modesty of non-
applicant no.2. The applicant has, therefore, challenged registration
of the first information report by filing the present application. The
investigating agency after completion of the investigation, filed
charge-sheet against the applicant.
4. We have heard Shri C. D. Rohankar, learned counsel for
the applicant, Shri M. K. Pathan, learned Additional Public
Prosecutor non-applicant no.1 and Mr. S. R. Dambhare, learned
counsel for non-applicant no.2.
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5. During pendency of this application, the applicant and
non-applicant no.2 have mutually arrived at a settlement.
6. Non-applicant no.2, who is personally present in the
Court today along with her mother, has filed an affidavit stating that
registration of the first information report was due to
misunderstanding with the applicant and she has mutually resolved
her dispute with the applicant. Therefore, she has no objection for
quashing the criminal proceedings against the applicant. The
affidavit filed by non-applicant no.2 is taken on record and marked
as "Exhibit-X" for the purposes of identification. The non-applicant
no.2 and her mother both have stated before the Court that the
consent for quashing of the criminal proceedings against the
applicant is out of free will and voluntary.
7. We have also gone through the entire material placed on
record in the form of charge-sheet. After going through the
allegations in the first information report and the material produced
in the form of charge-sheet, we are satisfied that the ingredients of
the offence under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code as alleged
4 APL523.22.odt
against the applicant are not fulfilled even if the material in the
charge-sheet is taken on its face value.
8. The Hon'ble Apex Court in Narinder Singh .vs. State of
Punjab, reported in 2014 AIR SCW 2065 has observed that the Court
cannot decline to quash criminal case in which the first information
report incorporates a particular provision, which is a serious offence
or an offence against the society. The Court shall make all endeavor
whether the first information report indeed discloses the ingredient
of such offence and Court can accept the settlement and quash the
first information report, if the Court is of the opinion that such
offence is unnecessarily incorporated in the first information report.
9. In view of the judgment of the Hon'ble Apex Court in
Narinder Singh's case (supra) and in view of amicable resolution of
the dispute between the applicant and non-applicant no.2, there is
no impediment for quashing of the first information report and the
charge-sheet against the applicant. We, therefore, pass the following
order :
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ORDER
1. The Criminal Application is allowed.
3. Rule is made absolute in terms of prayer clause (i),
which reads as under :
"quash and set aside the First Information Report vide
Crime No. 372/2021 registered at Police Station, Bajaj
Nagar, Nagpur on 28.12.2021 and charge-sheet which
registered as R.C.C. No. 1313/2022 on 16.03.2022
pending before the learned Judicial Magistrate, First
Class at Nagpur, in connection with the offences
punishable under Sections 354 of the Indian Penal
Code."
(AMIT B. BORKAR, J.) (V.M.DESHPANDE, J.)
Diwale
Digitally signed byPARAG
PRABHAKARRAO DIWALE
Signing Date:13.04.2022
18:13
