Neel Vikrambhai Shah vs State Of Gujarat
2022 Latest Caselaw 2476 Guj

     R/SCR.A/593/2015                             ORDER DATED: 04/03/2022




            IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD

        R/SPECIAL CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 593 of 2015
                             With
CRIMINAL MISC.APPLICATION (FIXING DATE OF EARLY HEARING) NO.
                           1 of 2022
       In R/SPECIAL CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 593 of 2015
==========================================================
                           NEEL VIKRAMBHAI SHAH
                                   Versus
                        STATE OF GUJARAT & 1 other(s)
==========================================================
Appearance:
KSHITIJ M AMIN(7572) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MR RAJESH K KANANI(2157) for the Respondent(s) No. 2
MS MD MEHTA, ASSISTANT PUBLIC PROSECUTOR for the Respondent(s)
No. 1
==========================================================

  CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE NIKHIL S. KARIEL

                              Date : 04/03/2022

                                ORAL ORDER

1. Heard learned Advocate Mr. Kshitij M. Amin on behalf of the

applicant and learned APP Ms. M. D. Mehta on behalf of the respondent-

State.

2. As noted vide order dated 02.03.2022 notice of the application for

fixing date was attempted to be served upon the original complainant and

whereas from the endorsement of the Police Inspector submitted vide

report dated 18.02.2022, it appears that the original complainant is no

more interested in pursuing the application.

3. By way of this application, the applicant seeks quashment of the FIR

being C. R. No. I-118 of 2013 registered with the Adalaj Police Station,

R/SCR.A/593/2015 ORDER DATED: 04/03/2022

Gandhinagar for offence punishable under Sections- 376 of the Indian

Penal Code. The said FIR being registered on 31.08.2013.

4. Learned Advocate Mr. Amin would submit that perusal of the FIR

would reveal that as such the crux of the allegations were against the

accused no. 1 whereas even though the present applicant was not named

in the FIR, he had been arraigned as accused in the charge sheet. The only

role attributable to the present applicant being that he had gone along

with the principal accused to a particular spot where the alleged incident

has happened. As such there is no allegation of the applicant having

committed any overt act or any abetment to the principal alleged offence.

4.1. Learned Advocate Mr. Amin would also draw the attention of this

Court to judgment and order dated 06.01.2020 passed by the learned 3 rd

Additional Sessions Court, Gandhinagar in Sessions Case No. 33 of 2014,

whereby according learned Advocate Mr. Amin, the trial against the

principal accused arising from the impugned FIR had proceeded and the

learned Sessions Court had acquitted the principal accused. Learned

Advocate Mr. Amin would also take this Court to certain observations in

the judgment whereby it would be revealed that the principal accused and

the complainant appearing to have reached some kind of settlement.

Learned Advocate Mr. Amin would therefore submit that the principal

accused having been acquitted by the learned Sessions Court after a full-

R/SCR.A/593/2015 ORDER DATED: 04/03/2022

fledged trial and since it has come on record that there is some kind of

settlement between the principal accused and the complainant and since

there is no role whatsoever attributable to the present applicant and since

it appears that the complainant is not interested in pursuing the matter

therefore, this application may be considered and impugned FIR may be

quashed qua the applicant herein.

5. Learned APP Ms. Mehta on behalf of the respondent-State would

submit that though the allegation leveled in the FIR were very serious in

nature but the fact of the applicant having not been named in the FIR and

no specific role being attributable to the applicant in the charge sheet

cannot be denied. Learned APP Ms. Mehta would further submit that

having regard to the subsequent developments, this Court may pass

appropriate orders.

6. Heard learned Advocates for the parties and having considered the FIR

as well as the charge sheet papers annexed with the petition and having

appreciated the judgment passed by the learned Sessions Court acquitting

the principal accused, this Court finds considerable substance in the

submission of learned Advocate Mr. Amin. It appears to this Court that in

addition to there being no specific allegations against the present

applicant, the principal accused and the complainant have arrived at some

R/SCR.A/593/2015 ORDER DATED: 04/03/2022

kind of settlement based on which, the complainant had resiled from her

original allegation before the Police against the principal accused

resulting in the acquital of the principal accused. This Court has also

considered the endorsements of the Police Inspector, Ravpura Police

Station as observed herein above, which reflect that the complainant is

not keen to pursue the application, more particularly, since it is stated that

complainant does not reside in Vadodara any more and the complainant

has informed that she will not be coming to Vadodara for next 6 months

since she was at Amritsar and from where she would shift to Bombay.

7. Having regard to the over all circumstances, as noted above, in the

considered opinion of this Court, the present application deserves

consideration. The impugned FIR and any further proceedings arising

therefrom stand quashed. Rule is made absolute. Direct service is

permitted.

8. In view of the order passed in the main matter the Criminal

Miscellaneous Application No. 1 of 2022 for fixing date of early hearing

stands disposed of.

(NIKHIL S. KARIEL,J) Mrs. J. J. Kedia