Gujarat High Court
Pravinsinh Laxmansinh Zala vs State Of Gujarat on 7 July, 2023
Bench: Sandeep N. Bhatt
R/SCR.A/11455/2021 ORDER DATED: 07/07/2023
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 11455 of 2021
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PRAVINSINH LAXMANSINH ZALA
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT
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Appearance:
MR AJ YAGNIK(1372) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MR HRIDAY BUCH(2372) for the Respondent(s) No. 2
MR SOAHAM JOSHI, APP for the Respondent(s) No. 1
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SANDEEP N. BHATT
Date : 07/07/2023
ORAL ORDER
1. By way of the present application under Section
482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, the applicants
pray for quashing and setting aside the impugned FIR being
No.11186002201548 of 2020 registered with the Kodinar Police
Station, District : Gir Somnath for the offences punishable
under Sections 376(2)(n), 376(3), 323 and 114 of the IPC and
Sections 3(a), 4, 5(L), 6 and 17 of the Protection of Children
from Sexual Offences Act.
2. Rule. Learned A.P.P. and learned advocate
Mr.Buch waive service of notice of rule for respondent Nos.1
and 2, respectively.
R/SCR.A/11455/2021 ORDER DATED: 07/07/2023
3. Upon joint request of the learned advocates,
present application is taken up for final disposal today.
4. Learned advocate Mr. Anand Yagnik for the
applicant has submitted that on earlier occasion, this Court
has passed the order on Criminal Misc. Application No.19027
of 2019, whereby the petitioner is protected during the
pendency of that petition. The trial Court is proceeded
against the other accused persons being Special POCSO Case
No.39 of 2013, whereby vide judgment and order dated
21.10.2022, all the accused persons No.1, 2 and 3 are
acquitted by giving benefit of doubt as the victim as well as
other relatives have been declared hostile. He has drawn the
attention of this Court towards the papers which are
produced by way of additional affidavit filed by the petitioner,
more particularly paragraphs 37 to 41 thereof and has
submitted that considering the fact that the victim girl as
well as her grand-mother, both have specifically stated during
the trial that no such incident has happened as alleged and
they are not even known the present applicant. He has
submitted that in view of such development, this petition
may be allowed.
5. Learned advocate Mr.Buch for the complainant has
submitted that he has nothing to add more than which is
reflected in the judgment and order passed by the learned
R/SCR.A/11455/2021 ORDER DATED: 07/07/2023
Special Court and this Court may take cognizance of the
same and may pass appropriate order.
6. Learned APP Mr. Joshi for the State has
vehemently opposed this application. He has tendered further
report which is dated 05.07.2023 which is taken on record.
He has drawn the attention of this Court towards the further
statement recorded by the police pursuant to the order
passed in Criminal Misc. Application No.19027 of 2020
wherein also, the victim girl has categorically stated that she
has wrongly implicated the present applicant in the alleged
offence. She has stated that she was under wrong
information named the present applicant and no such incident
has taken. Moreover, learned APP has also fairly submitted
that he cannot disputed the findings given by the learned
Special Court. He has also tendered the statement of the
victim girl dated 23.01.2021 along with the report, which is
taken on record.
7. Considering the fact that now, the leaned trial
Court has also considered the aspect of the present applicant
in no uncertain terms relying upon the statement of the
complainant herself and deposition of the victim girl and
therefore, no fruitful purpose would be served to continue
with the proceedings against the present applicant, though
the alleged offence is very serious in nature, but this Court
R/SCR.A/11455/2021 ORDER DATED: 07/07/2023
has no option but to quash the impugned FIR / proceedings
qua the applicant in view of the judgment passed by the
learned trial Court.
8. Considering the totality of the facts and
circumstances of the case, no fruitful purpose would be
served to continue the proceedings against the applicant. The
proceedings will practically be the futile exercise in view of
the statement / hostility of the victim girl as well as the
complainant. Therefore, taking into consideration of the
decision of the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of the State
of Haryana V/s Bhajan Lal reported in AIR 1992 SC 604,
this petition need to be allowed and the impugned F.I.R. is
required to be quashed and set aside qua the applicant.
9. Resultantly, this application is allowed. The
impugned FIR being No.11186002201548 of 2020 registered
with the Kodinar Police Station, District : Gir Somnath and
all other consequential proceedings arising out of said FIR
are hereby quashed and set aside qua the applicant only.
10. The alleged incident is very disturbing.
Unfortunately, the victim girl and/or the relatives of the
victim girl did not raise any voice against the so-called
offence. We come across many cases where the relative/s are
R/SCR.A/11455/2021 ORDER DATED: 07/07/2023
involved in such type of heinous crimes and they drag the
minor girls into prostitution. The present case may be one of
such cases, but, from the material on record, there is no
option left with this Court to take different view other than
allowing this application, at this stage.
11. Rule is made absolute to the aforesaid extent.
Direct service is permitted.
(SANDEEP N. BHATT,J)
M.H. DAVE
