Gujarat High Court
Mahindra And Mahindra Financial ... vs Jigneshkumar Navinchandra Patel on 7 July, 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/12928/2025 ORDER DATED: 07/07/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CRIMINAL MISC.APPLICATION (FOR LEAVE TO APPEAL) NO. 12928
of 2025
In F/CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 17127 of 2025
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MAHINDRA AND MAHINDRA FINANCIAL SERVICES LTD. THROUGH POA
MRUNAL MUKESHBHAI DHOLAKIA
Versus
JIGNESHKUMAR NAVINCHANDRA PATEL & ORS.
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Appearance:
MR HB CHAMPAVAT(6149) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MR. PRANAV DHAGAT, APP for the Respondent(s) No. 3
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MS. JUSTICE S.V. PINTO
Date : 07/07/2025
ORAL ORDER
1. The present application is filed by the applicant - original
complainant seeking leave to file an appeal against the order dated
07.03.2025 passed by the Court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate,
Ahmedabad (Rural) (hereinafter referred to as the "learned trial Court")
in Criminal Case No. 17808 of 2022, whereby the learned trial Court has
dismissed the Criminal Case for want of prosecution under the provisions
of Section 256(3) of Cr.P.C. and the respondent Nos. 1 and 2 came to be
acquitted from the offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable
Instruments Act, 1881 (hereinafter referred to as 'the NI Act").
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/12928/2025 ORDER DATED: 07/07/2025
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2. Heard learned advocate Mr. H.B.Champavat appearing for the
applicant, and learned APP Mr. Pranav Dhagat for the respondent No. 3 -
State.
3. Learned advocate Mr. H.B.Champavat for the applicant submits
that the applicant is engaged in the business of finance and the respondent
Nos. 1 and 2 had taken the financial assistance to the tune of Rs.4,50,000/
for purchasing a motor vehicle. The respondent Nos. 1 and 2 had entered
into a loan agreement and the loan was to be repaid in installments.
Learned advocate for the applicant submits that some of the loan amount
was repaid and towards the outstanding amount of Rs.1,57,000/-, the
respondent Nos.1 and 2 had issued Cheque No. "176264" dated
25.07.2022 for the amount of Rs.1,57,000/- from their account with
"ICICI Bank". The cheque was deposited by the applicant in his account
with State Bank of India, S.G.Highway, Ahmedabad Branch, but the
cheque returned unpaid with the endorsement "Funds Insufficient". The
demand statutory notice was given, which was duly served to the
respondent Nos. 1 and 2 but the loan amount was not repaid and hence
the complaint was filed under Section 138 of the NI Act before the Court
of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ahmedabad (Rural), which came to be
registered as Criminal Case No. 17808 of 2022. After the respondent Nos.
1 and 2 duly served with the summons, they have appeared before the
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/12928/2025 ORDER DATED: 07/07/2025
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learned trial Court and the plea were recorded at Exh.8 on 06.01.2024 and
thereafter the affidavit of examination-in-chief was filed by the applicant
at Exh.14. During the pendency of the application, the authorized
representative of the company had left the company and the authorized
representative had to be substituted, and hence, the application was
preferred at Exh.15 on 07.03.2024 for adjournment with a reason that the
authorized representative has to be substituted but the learned trial Court
was pleased to reject the application and by the impugned order below
Exh.1, the complaint of the complainant came to be dismissed for non-
prosecution. Learned advocate for the applicant submits that the applicant
had filed the affidavit of examination-in-chief and all the documents that
would rely upon by the list at Exh. 3 but the learned trial Court did not
appreciate the same in proper perspective. Learned advocate submits that
the applicant has a good case on merits and hence the application seeking
leave to appeal must be allowed.
4. Learned APP Mr. Pranav Dhagat for the respondent No 3 - State
and has submitted that necessary orders may be passed after perusing the
copy of the impugned judgment and a copy of the Rojkam produced on
record by the learned advocate for the applicant.
5. Considering the submissions of learned advocate for the applicant
as also the copy of the Rojkam produced on record by the learned
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/12928/2025 ORDER DATED: 07/07/2025
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advocate for the applicant, it appears that the entire evidence of the
applicant including the affidavit of examination-in-chief and the
documentary evidence were produced on record, but the learned trial
Court has not appreicated the same in proper perspective and the
impugned order came to be passed under Section 256 of the Code of
Criminal Procedure, 1973, and hence, the application seeking leave to
appeal deserves consideration. Consequently, the same is allowed.
(S. V. PINTO,J)
VVM
