Calcutta High Court (Appellete Side)

Prasanta Dhar vs State Of West Bengal & Ors on 19 July, 2022

            IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA
           CRIMINAL REVISIONAL JURISDICTION
                    APPELLATE SIDE
Present:
The Hon'ble Justice Ajoy Kumar Mukherjee

                           C.R.R. 1618 of 2020

                               Prasanta Dhar
                                    -vs-
                        State of West Bengal & Ors.

For the Petitioner            : Mr. Fazlur Rahman
                                Mr. Sourav Paul

For the State                 : Mr. B.K. Roy
                                Ms. Baisali Basu

For the Opposite Party No.2: Mr. Sourav Chatterjee
                             Mr. Soumya Nag

Heard on                      : 11.7.2022

Judgment on                   : 19.07.2022


Ajoy Kumar Mukherjee, J.

1. The present revisional application has been directed for quashing the

impugned FIR being Kalighat Police Station Case No.94 of 2020 and the on

going proceeding registered as CGR Case No.2304 of 2020 initiated on the

basis of the FIR, lodged by opposite party no.2 /defacto complainant Rajiv

Sarkar.

2. The defacto complainant moved an application under Section 156(3) of

the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 before the learned Chief Judicial

Magistrate at Alipore being No.53 of 2020 and upon considering the said

application, learned Magistrate was pleased to direct the Officer-in-Charge of

the Kalighat Police Station to start investigation treating the petition of

complaint as FIR.

3. Pursuant to the said direction, the aforesaid Kalighat Police Station Case

No.94 of 2020 corresponding to CGR Case No.2304 of 2020 was initiated. The

present petitioner is acquainted with the accused no.1 Sikha Biswas during

her college life and initial service life and after passing out from the college, she

started residing as a tenant under the landlordship of the petitioner. The

accused no.1 as a Bengalee lady used to address the petitioner as her Dada

(elder brother) and petitioner never claimed nor represented himself to be a full

blooded brother or kin and kith of the accused nos.1 and 2.

4. Sometime in the year 2015, accused no.1 Sikha had surrendered the

tenancy at the premises and since then the petitioner did not have any touch

with the accused no.1 except some rare occasions. The petitioner does not

have any personal acquaintance with the defacto complainant. However, he

has come to know about the defacto complainant through the accused no.1

Sikha as the husband of the accused no.1. The petitioner has been falsely

implicated in the criminal proceeding which has arisen out of a matrimonial

dispute between the defacto complainant Rajiv and accused no.1.Sikha. In the

written complaint, defacto complainant has allegedly canvassed a matrimonial

dispute with accused no.1 and also canvassed an alleged story of the

participation of the petitioner who has merely a formal acquaintance with the

accused no.1 in affairs relating to negotiation of marriage between the defacto

complainant and the accused no.1. The defacto complainant has further

canvassed a concocted story whereby he has alleged that the petitioner

participated in torturing the mother of the defacto complainant.

5. It is further alleged against the petitioner that the petitioner herein

involved in a racket and the petitioner had allegedly threatened the defacto

complainant to kill by administering spurious substances.

6. It is further submitted that the petitioner is neither family member of the

accused no.1 Sikha nor has any relationship with her and the acquaintance

between the petitioner and the accused no.1 is a very formal one. The defacto

complainant is a police officer attached in the Kolkata Police Force and

possibly on account of his matrimonial discord, he has started the vindictive

criminal proceeding against the accused no.1, where the petitioner has been

made a scapegoat. As the parties are residing separately, there is no chance of

inflicting torture by the present petitioner upon the mother of defacto

complainant. The petitioner was neither a witness to the matrimony of the

accused no.1 nor a participant in the alleged forgery of court document as

claimed by the defacto complainant. Therefore, arraying the petitioner as an

accused in the aforesaid complaint can be safely inferred with some malicious

intent on the part of the defacto complainant. The allegations made out

against the petitioner in the complaint under reference do not constitute of an

offence either under the general penal laws or under any special enactment

and as such, the criminal proceeding against the present petitioner is

vexatious and harassive and the impugned FIR is based on surmise and

conjecture and also inherently improbable and absurd and for which the FIR

being Kalighat Police Station Case No.94 of 2020 along with impugned

proceeding registered as CGR Case No.2304 of 2020 is liable to be quashed.

7. Mr. Sourav Chatterjee, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the

opposite party no.2,/defacto complainant submits that in the early part of the

year 2015 the defacto complainant, namely, Rajib Sarkar who is a government

employee was desirous in effecting his marriage and being attracted on an

advertisement for match making, published in a Bengali daily contacted over a

mobile phone number mentioned in the said advertisement. It is mentioned in

the written complaint lodged by defacto complainant that the complaint

mentioned accused no.2, namely, Sunil Biswas who had posed and portrayed

himself as the elder brother of the alliance or intending bridegroom being the

accused no.1, Smt. Sikha Biswas and accordingly, had a conversation with the

mother of the petitioner over match making and being prima facie satisfied

with the details and information percolated by the accused, the mother of the

petitioner had proceeded with further conversation.

8. Mr. Chatterjee further submits that the conversation of the aforesaid

accused persons was so convincing that the defacto complainant never felt it

necessary to cause indepth enquiry and placing reliance upon their

information, a date of marriage was fixed on 10.8.2015 and the marriage was

solemnized under the Special Marriage Act. Few days after marriage when the

complainant and accused no.1 had gone honeymoon trip then the accused

no.1 started showing her true colour and in disguise of offering few dry fruits,

she has administered spurious and poisonous substances to the petitioner

causing immense physical problem and other discomforts to the petitioner

throughout the trip. Subsequently, the accused no.1 Sikha started flaring up

quarrels with the petitioner and his widow mother and sister on different flimsy

pretext and further went on pressurizing the petitioner to be separated from

her mother and sister and for obvious reason the petitioner had refused to

oblige her. The accused no.1 Sikha and her inmates being accused nos.2

Sunil Biswas and accused no. 3 Prasanta Biswas @ Prasanta Dhar (present

petitioner) had perpetrated immense mental and physical torture to the widow

mother and sister of the petitioner.

9. After recovery from mental trauma, the defacto complainant Rajib Sarkar

started causing query regarding the genuinity of the information given by the

accused no.1 and her purported family comprising of aforesaid accused nos.2

and 3 in course of such negotiation of marriage. It reveals that the accused

no.1 had given a false information in the paper advertisement claiming herself

as a divorcee and in course of registration of marriage and as well as in course

of negotiation, they have presented a purported photocopy of an order passed

by the Additional District and Sessions Judge, 2 nd Court at Barasat in MAT

Suit No.113 of 2013 which reveals that a decree of divorce was effected in

between the parties namely, one Partha Chatterjee and accused No. 1 Sikha

Biswas on 27.01.2014 in a proceeding being MAT Suit No.113 of 2013 which

was pending for disposal before the said Court and on further scrutiny it was

detected that the parties therein in said Mat Suit 113/2013 before the said

court is completely different from the parties shown in the photocopy of the

certified copy so handed over by the accused no.1 and her two purported

brothers being accused nos.2 and 3 (present petitioner) in course of negotiation

and registration of marriage.

10. Actually, the MAT Suit No.113 of 2013 which was disposed of by the

learned Additional District and Sessions Judge, 2nd Court, Barasat, the parties

were Shri Kumaresh Mondal and Smt. Sucharita Mondal (Modak) and the said

case was disposed of on a different date, i.e., on 03.02.2014. Having

possession of the actual certified copy of the order passed in said proceeding, it

became clear that accused no.1 and her two purported brothers being accused

nos.2 and 3 (present petitioner) had adopted and resorted the way of falsehood

to procure such purported marriage in between the accused no.1 Sikha and

the petitioner and thus they had produced forged and fabricated documents in

the form of photocopy of certified copy of the court proceeding being MAT Suit

No.113 of 2013.

11. Upon presenting and portraying the same as genuine, all the three

accused persons including the present petitioner have not only deceived and

cheated the petitioner and his family but also committed offence upon a

Government appointed marriage registrar for causing procurement of such

marriage and further by the strength of marriage, the accused no.1 and her

two associates, namely, accused nos.2 and present petitioner(accused no.3)

had procured substantial amount of gold ornaments and other valuables from

the family of the petitioner in the form of gift or purported stridhan.

12. Mr. Chatterjee on behalf of the opposite party no.2 further submits that

the present petitioner is the member of a well-organized racket and the

members of the racket are habituating in forgery and they cooked up

documents and by the strength of such forged and cooked up documents they

procure different important document from different persons. Investigation

has already been ended in charge-sheet and as such, the question of quashing

the FIR does not arise and this is also because substantial materials have been

collected by the investigating officer during investigation.

13. In this context, learned counsel for the opposite party no.2 has shown

observation passed by this High Court in different proceedings, namely, in

WPA 7073 of 2021, CRM 10239 of 2020, CRM 10234 of 2020 and also the

decision passed by this Court in CRR 1728 of 2020 wherein the co-accused of

the said complaint, namely, Sunil Biswas (accused No.2) prayed for quashing

the aforesaid proceeding being Kalighat Police Station Case No.94 of 2020 in

connection with the said accused and this Court vide its judgement dated

27.01.2021 was pleased to dismiss said CRR 1728/2020.

14. Mr. B.K. Roy, learned counsel appearing on behalf of the State submits

that sufficient incriminating materials had been collected by the investigating

officer which shows that the present petitioner along with two accused

persons, namely, Sikha Biswas and Sunil Biswas prepared forged judgment

copy of the learned Additional District and Sessions Judge, 2nd Court, Barasat

and produced the same before the marriage registrar at the time of marriage of

accused no. 1 with the complainant and said copy of forged judgment of the

Court along with original certified copy of the judgment in MAT Suit No.113 of

2013 has been collected by investigating officer during investigation and kept

with the case diary.

15. It is further submitted by Mr. Roy that during course of investigation

accused Sikha Biswas and Sunil Biswas were arrested in the case and both are

now on court bail but after making several attempts, the present petitioner

Prasanta Dhar who is the other accused of the case, still absconding and police

has already submitted charge-sheet against all the three accused persons

including the present petitioner under Sections

120B/177/181/420/466/467/468/471/474 of the Indian Penal Code

showing present petitioner as abscondee.

16. Considered the rival submissions.

17. It appears from the case diary that sufficient incriminating materials

have been collected by the investigating officer during investigation against all

the three accused persons. The petitioner who has come before the court for

quashing the proceeding is F.I.R. named but he had never co-operated with the

investigating agency nor surrendered before the trial court to plead his

innocence.

18. On the contrary, the prayer for quashing of same proceeding made by

the other co-accused Sunil Biswas who is almost on the same footing has been

dismissed by a co-ordinate Bench of this Court in CRR 1728 of 2020 on the

ground that investigation of a case is interferable in a case subject to making

out a strong case revealing palpable illegality in the institution of a criminal

case and since the case under challenge is not of such a nature and dimension

in which vigorous and extensive investigation is called for, the Court was not

agreeable to the contention as presented by the learned advocate for the

petitioner, Sunil Biswas.

19. The said Sunil Biswas being aggrieved by an order of anticipatory bail

passed by a Division Bench of this Court preferred a writ application being

WPA 7073 of 2021 and a coordinate Bench of this Court dismissed the same

with a costs of Rs.20,000/- vide order dated 18.3.2021. Earlier this Court

rejected anticipatory bail prayed by other two accused persons, considering the

statement of witness as well as documents seized in the course of investigation

and also on the necessity of custodial interrogation.

20. The materials collected during investigation goes to show that in the

written complaint defacto complainant has specifically alleged about forgery of

court's order against accused, Sikha Biswas Prasanta Biswas and the present

petitioner Sunil Biswas.

21. It is well settled that at the stage when the High Court considers a

petition for quashing criminal proceeding under section 482 of the Cr.P.C., the

allegations in the F.I.R. must be read as they stand and it is only if on the face

of the allegations that no offence as alleged, has been made out, that the court

may be justified in exercising it's jurisdiction to quash. The court should apply

the test as to whether the uncontroverted allegations as made from the record

of the case and the documents submitted therewith prima facie establish the

offence or not. No meticulous examination of the evidence is needed for

considering whether the case would end in conviction or not at this stage.

22. The parameter of the jurisdiction under section 482 have been reiterated

in a consistent line of authorities and at this stage, it may be material to refer

to a recent decision of the Apex Court in Rajeev Kourav Vs. Baisahab and

others reported in (2020) 3 SCC 317, wherein Their Lordship is pleased to

held:-

"8. It is no more res integra that exercise of power under Section 482 CrPC to quash a criminal proceeding is only when an allegation made in the FIR or the charge-sheet constitutes the ingredients of the offence/offences alleged. Interference by the High Court under Section 482 CrPC is to prevent the abuse of process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice. It is settled law that the evidence produced by the accused in his defence cannot be looked into by the court, except in very exceptional circumstances, at the initial stage of the criminal proceedings. It is trite law that the High Court cannot embark upon the appreciation of evidence while considering the petition filed under Section 482 CrPC for quashing criminal proceedings. It is clear from the law laid down by this Court that if a prima facie case is made out disclosing the ingredients of the offence alleged against the accused, the Court cannot quash a criminal proceeding."

23. From a reading of the complaint, it cannot be held that even if the

allegations against present petitioner are taken as proved no case is made out,

in the complaint allegation of misappropriation of properly and allegation of

hatching criminal conspiracy in forging document and using the same for

unlawful gain has been equally attributed to all the three accused persons

including the present petitioner and his role can by no means distinguishable

from the role played by other two accused persons in committing the crime as

averred in the complaint. The prayer for quashing the same proceeding made

by other accused Sunil, who is almost on the same footing with the present

petitioner as per F.I.R. statement, has been rejected. Petitioner herein is still

an abscondee as mentioned in the charge-sheet and never faced the proceeding

to reveal the truth. The question whether petitioner has infact participated in