Gujarat High Court
Arif Ahmedbhai Ajmeri vs State Of Gujarat on 28 January, 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/SCR.A/14306/2024 ORDER DATED: 28/01/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CRIMINAL APPLICATION (FOR CONSENT QUASHING) NO.
14306 of 2024
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ARIF AHMEDBHAI AJMERI
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT & ANR.
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Appearance:
MR. MAULIK M SONI(7249) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MS MAITHILI MEHTA, APP for the Respondent(s) No. 1
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE SANDEEP N. BHATT
Date : 28/01/2025
ORAL ORDER
1. Learned advocate Ms. Honey Raval states that she has
instructions to appear for respondent-complainant. She is
permitted to file her Vakalatnama in the Registry within
three working days from today and the Registry shall accept
the same. She has produced affidavit of the complainant,
which is ordered to be taken on record.
2. Learned advocates for the parties have drawn the
attention of this Court to the affidavit of the complainant.
The Respondent-complainant is present before the Court and
admits the correctness and genuineness of the affidavit filed
through the learned advocate. Learned advocate Ms. Honey
Raval identifies the respondent-complainant and confirms
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correctness and genuineness of the affidavit.
3. Rule returnable forthwith. Learned A.P.P. and learned
advocate Ms. Honey Raval waive service of Rule for
respondent Nos.1 and 2 respectively. Learned APP objects
quashment of present proceedings on the premise of
settlement.
4. With the consent of learned advocate for the applicant
and learned advocate for respondents, present petition is
taken up for final disposal today.
5. By way of the present petition under Articles 226 and
227 of the Constitution of India read with Section 528 of the
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (`BNSS' for short),
the petitioner/s prays to quash and set aside the order dated
09.10.2024 passed in Criminal Case No.1351 of 2015 by the
learned Additional Chief Judicial Magisrate, Khambhat and
consequential/subsequent proceedings, if any, arising
therefrom.
6. Heard learned advocates.
7. Learned advocate for the petitioner/s has taken this
Court through the factual matrix arising out of the present
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application.
8. At the outset, it is submitted that the parties have
amicably resolved the dispute. In support of such submission
made at the bar by the learned advocates appearing for the
respective parties, they have placed on record affidavit of
settlement duly signed by the complainant.
9. Since now, the dispute with reference to the impugned
FIR is settled and resolved by and between parties, which is
confirmed by the original complainant through learned
advocate, in view of the judgment in the case of State of
Madhya Pradesh versus Laxmi Narayan reported in (2019) 5
SCC 688, more particularly, paragraph 15, this Court is of
the opinion that in the peculiar facts and circumstances of
the present case, when the parties have arrived at settlement
of dispute, the matter requires consideration for quashing of
criminal proceedings without entering into further
technicalities of the matter. Paragraph 15 reads as under:
"15. Considering the law on the point and the other
decisions of this Court on the point, referred to hereinabove,
it is observed and held as under:
15.1.That the power conferred under Section 482 of the Code
to quash the criminal proceedings for the non-compoundable
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offences under Section 320 of the Code can be exercised
having overwhelmingly and predominantly the civil character,
particularly those arising out of commercial transactions or
arising out of matrimonial relationship or family disputes
and when the parties have resolved the entire dispute
amongst themselves;
15.2.Such power is not to be exercised in those prosecutions
which involved heinous and serious offences of mental
depravity or offences like murder, rape, dacoity, etc. Such
offences are not private in nature and have a serious impact
on society;
15.3.Similarly, such power is not to be exercised for the
offences under the special statutes like the Prevention of
Corruption Act or the offences committed by public servants
while working in that capacity are not to be quashed merely
on the basis of compromise between the victim and the
offender;
15.4. Offences under Section 307 IPC and the Arms Act, etc.
would fall in the category of heinous and serious offences
and therefore are to be treated as crime against the society
and not against the individual alone, and therefore, the
criminal proceedings for the offence under Section 307 IPC
and/or the Arms Act, etc. which have a serious impact on
the society cannot be quashed in exercise of powers under
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Section 482 of the Code, on the ground that the parties
have resolved their entire dispute amongst themselves.
However, the High Court would not rest its decision merely
because there is a mention of Section 307 IPC in the FIR
or the charge is framed under this provision. It would be
open to the High Court to examine as to whether
incorporation of Section 307 IPC is there for the sake of it
or the prosecution has collected sufficient evidence, which if
proved, would lead to framing the charge under Section 307
IPC. For this purpose, it would be open to the High Court
to go by the nature of injury sustained, whether such injury
is inflicted on the vital/delicate parts of the body, nature of
weapons used, etc. However, such an exercise by the High
Court would be permissible only after the evidence is
collected after investigation and the charge-sheet is
filed/charge is framed and/or during the trial. Such exercise
is not permissible when the matter is still under
investigation. Therefore, the ultimate conclusion in paras 29.6
and 29.7 of the decision of this Court in Narinder Singh
[Narinder Singh v. State of Punjab, (2014) 6 SCC 466 :
(2014) 3 SCC (Cri) 54] should be read harmoniously and to
be read as a whole and in the circumstances stated
hereinabove;
15.5 [Ed.: Para 15.5 corrected vide Official Corrigendum No.
F.3/Ed.B.J./22/2019 dated 3-4-2019.] . While exercising the
power under Section 482 of the Code to quash the criminal
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proceedings in respect of non-compoundable offences, which
are private in nature and do not have a serious impact on
society, on the ground that there is a settlement/compromise
between the victim and the offender, the High Court is
required to consider the antecedents of the accused; the
conduct of the accused, namely, whether the accused was
absconding and why he was absconding, how he had
managed with the complainant to enter into a compromise,
etc.",
10. Resultantly, this application is allowed. The order dated
09.10.2024 passed in Criminal Case No.1351 of 2015 by the
learned Additional Chief Judicial Magisrate, Khambhat and
consequential/subsequent proceedings, if any, arising therefrom
is hereby quashed and set aside.
11. Rule is made absolute to the aforesaid extent. Direct
service is permitted.
(SANDEEP N. BHATT,J)
MAYA
