Vijay Ahuja vs State Of Nct Of Delhi & Anr
2018 Latest Caselaw 4203 Del

$~18 & 19
*    IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
                                                Reserved on: 10th July, 2018
                                             Pronounced on: 23rd July, 2018

+       CRL.M.C. 3084/2015 and Crl. M.A. 10944/2015

        VIJAY AHUJA                                      ..... Petitioner
                                  Through:   Mr. Sanjeev Agarwal, Adv.
                                  versus
        STATE OF NCT OF DELHI & ANR        ..... Respondents
                      Through: Mr. Mukesh Kumar, APP for
                                the State.

+       CRL.M.C. 3086/2015 and Crl. M.A. 11004/2015

        VIJAY AHUJA                                      ..... Petitioner
                                  Through:   Mr. Sanjeev Agarwal, Adv.
                                  versus
        STATE OF NCT OF DELHI & ANR        ..... Respondents
                      Through: Mr. Mukesh Kumar, APP for
                                the State.
CORAM:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE R.K.GAUBA
                                  ORDER

1. The petitioner in these matters has been summoned as an accused by the court of the Metropolitan Magistrate on complaint cases (nos.11087/2014 and 575/2015) respectively and faces prosecution on the allegations of he having committed an offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 respecting cheque nos.301978 and 301979, each of the value of Rs.10 Lakh and

cheque no.484424 for Rs.30 Lakhs, drawn on his account with ING Vysya Bank Ltd, Delhi. The second respondent is the complainant of the said criminal cases, his allegations being that the cheques when presented at the bank were returned unpaid and inspite of notice of demand, the petitioner did not pay and thereby he having committed the aforementioned offences.

2. The petitioner invokes the jurisdiction of this court under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 to pray for quashing of the proceedings in the two complaint cases on the grounds that it is an abuse of the process of the court; that the cheques were issued as "security" and not for the discharge of any debt or other liability; and that the court in Delhi has wrongly exercised the jurisdiction as all the acts involved in these matters were committed in Ahmedabad (Gujarat).

3. The question of territorial jurisdiction is rendered academic for the simple reason the averments in the complaints themselves endorse the objection of the petitioner that no charge for offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 can be brought against him with regard to the aforementioned three cheques since they were issued as security cheques. The pleadings in (para 4 of) the first complaint, they being almost identical to the pleadings in the second complaint may be extracted as under :-

"...the security cheques were demanded to which the accused had issued three signed blank cheques and stated if the amount is not returned within 2 years then by filing the cheques the same may be deposited..."

(emphasis supplied)

4. With above being the admitted position of the complainant, the summoning order against the petitioner on their basis is found to be incorrect and wrong exercise of jurisdiction.

5. The petitions and the applications filed therewith are, thus, allowed. The proceedings in the aforementioned criminal complaint cases against the petitioner are hereby quashed.

(R.K. GAUBA) JUDGE JULY 23, 2018 yg