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Gujarat High Court
Manojbhai Kachrabhai Vasoya vs State Of Gujarat on 10 April, 2026
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/10969/2021 ORDER DATED: 10/04/2026
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CRIMINAL MISC.APPLICATION (FOR QUASHING & SET ASIDE
FIR/ORDER) NO. 10969 of 2021
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MANOJBHAI KACHRABHAI VASOYA
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT & ANR.
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Appearance:
MR. RAHUL R DHOLAKIA(6765) for the Applicant(s) No. 1
NOTICE SERVED for the Respondent(s) No. 2
MR. RONAK RAVAL, APP for the Respondent(s) No. 1
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MRS. JUSTICE M. K. THAKKER
Date : 10/04/2026
ORAL ORDER
1. This application is filed under section 482 of the Code of
Criminal Procedure, 1973 for quashment of the FIR registered
with Dumas Police Station, Surat, being I-CR No.
11210006210299 of 2021 for the offences punishable under
Sections 376(1), 114, 506(1)(2) of the IPC alleging the
accusations against the four persons wherein, the present
applicant was named as accused no.1.
2. It is the case of the first informant that she is running a
beauty parlour at Varachha, Surat, and had sent a friend
request on the Facebook ID of the present applicant. On
25.01.2019, a friend request was sent by the complainant on
Facebook account of the present applicant which was accepted
by the present applicant, and thereafter, there were regular
contacts between the present applicant and the complainant.
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As per the allegations, one day, the present applicant had
called the victim and insisted to meet at his office, in turn, the
first informant went to the office of the applicant wherein one
Bipinbhai was introduced by the present applicant who had
offered the job to the first informant in the business of import
and export. The first informant thereafter was offered a cold
drink, and having the same she felt dizziness and had lost
consciousness. On regaining consciousness, after one and half
hour, she left the office on her Activa. Thereafter, again the
applicant had called her and invited at the house of one
Deenaben who is accused no.4 for meeting and lunch. She
went there and had realized that the present applicant as well
as the accused no.4 had consumed alcohol, and she was also
offered, but she denied to consume the same. She left the
house of accused no.4, and thereafter, on multiple occasions,
she met the applicant. On 23.10.2020, the applicant had
informed the first informant to make food for about 4-5 people
and informed to visit the office situated at Vesu, and she went
there, again she was offered a drink, and on taking the same,
she vomitted, and to change the clothes, the accused no.4 had
taken her in her room situated at the upper floor of the said
premises. The applicant came there and had started taking the
advantage of the situation which was objected by the first
informant, and she felt dizziness, she laid down in the room,
started video recording on her phone. As per the contention,
physical relations were made by the applicant against the will
of the complainant, and on gaining the consciousness, she left
the room where the applicant had asked not to disclose the
incident to anyone or to face dire consequences. The first
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informant was dropped back to V. R. Mall. Thereafter, on
number of occasions, the applicant indulged into physical
relations with the first informant and as the first informant was
forced after showing the nude photographs of different girls to
come as and when she would be called as well as to provide
the other girls also, the first informant has lodged the FIR on
11.06.2021 stating the period of offence from 25.01.2019
onwards. The said FIR is subject matter of challenge before this
Court at the hands of present applicant/accused no.1.
3. Heard learned advocate Mr. Dholakia for the applicant
and learned APP Mr. Ronak Raval for the State.
3.1. It is submitted by learned advocate Mr. Dholakia that
as per the contentions recital of the FIR, the first informant
aged around 38 years had sent friend request to the present
applicant. The present applicant had responded the request,
and thereafter, they came into contact with each other, and
had developed physical relations. It is submitted by learned
advocate Mr. Dholakia that keeping mobile on on 23.10.2020,
the first informant had made physical relations with the
applicant, and purpose of keeping mobile on is to extort the
money or to blackmail the present applicant. It is submitted by
learned advocate Mr. Dholakia that the transcript of the call
recording between the present applicant and first informant
which is produced suggests that time and again the first
informant has demanded money and at the end when
ornaments of the wife of the present applicant was demanded
which was denied, the same is resulted into FIR. It is submitted
by learned advocate Mr. Dholakia that present applicant had
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filed an application before the Dumas Police Station, Surat City,
on 08.06.2021, giving the conversations of the present
applicant and the first informant stating that he has to give
Rs.60,00,000/- to settle the dispute or give the ornaments of
the wife. It is submitted that the first informant had entered
into physical relations with the applicant with the consent,
however, the applicant became victim of honey trap. Learned
advocate for the applicant has relied upon the decision
rendered by the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of State of
Haryana Vs. Bhajanlal & Ors reported in AIR 1992 SC 604,
and submitted that on bare reading of the FIR, no cognizable
offence is disclosed, therefore, the same is covered under the
criteria (1) and (5) of the above-mentioned case. On
submitting the same, it is prayed to allow the application by
quashing the impugned FIR.
3.2. Per contra, learned APP Mr. Ronak Raval submitted
that as per the FSL report which is collected by the
investigating officer, the DVD contains the physical relations of
the applicant and the first informant which was recorded by
the first informant. It is also submitted that the statement of
the victim under Section 164 of Cr.P.C. is also part of the
record. It is submitted that chargesheet is not filed, therefore,
at this stage, no interference be called for, and application
may be dismissed.
4. Having considered the submissions made by the learned
advocates for the respective parties and on referring the
allegations made in the FIR, the question arise for
consideration before this Court is that whether the case of the
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applicant falls in criteria which is mentioned by the Apex Court
in the case of Bhajanlal (supra)?
4.1. To test the above question, allegations which are
made in the FIR as discussed above suggest following things;
(a) The first informant is a married lady of aged 38 years,
running beauty parlour.
(b) As per the recital of the FIR, the friend request was made
by the first informant on Facebook account of the present
applicant. In turn, the present applicant had responded, and
thereafter, on various time, they made calls to each other.
For the first incident which is stated to have been occurred
in the office of the present applicant situated at Vesu, there
was no specific date and time stated in the FIR. It is stated
that after consuming the cold drinks she felt dizziness, and
regained consciousness after one and half hours, and then
after she left on her Activa. Second time, when she was
called at the house of accused no.4, she was offered to
consume the liquor which she denied, and had left the
house of accused no.4. There after also, there was no dates
and time stated but has mentioned that after two months of
the second incident, she again went to meet the applicant
at the house of accused no.4 where she was proposed to
make friendship by the present applicant which she denied.
(c) Fourth time, she went to V. R. Mall, and there after, keeping
her Activa at that place, she accompanied present applicant
in his car where along with the other accused the first
informant came to the house of one Bipin Ramani situated
at Dumas.
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(d) Thereafter, fifth time, the applicant visited the beauty
parlour of the first informant where she was offered to visit
the office in 2-3 days preparing the meal of 4-5 persons. She
went there on 23.10.2020, and recorded the video in her
mobile of physical relations with the applicant. Again, on
number of occasions, she accompanied the applicant and
developed physical relations.
5. At this stage, reference of the provisions for which the
alleged offence charged is required to be made.
Section 376(1) of IPC: Punishment for rape.--(1) Whoever,
except in the cases provided for in sub-section (2), commits rape,
shall be punished with rigorous imprisonment of either description
for a term which 3[shall not be less than ten years, but which may
extend to imprisonment for life, and shall also be liable to fine].
Section 114 of IPC: Abettor present when offence is
committed.--Whenever any person who is absent would be liable
to be punished as an abettor, is present when the act or offence for
which he would be punishable in consequence of the abetment is
committed, he shall be deemed to have committed such act or
offence.
Section 506 of IPC: Punishment for criminal intimidation.--
Whoever commits the offence of criminal intimidation shall be
punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which
may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both;
If threat be to cause death or grievous hurt, etc.--and if the
threat be to cause death or grievous hurt, or to cause the
destruction of any property by fire, or to cause an offence
punishable with death or 1
[imprisonment for life], or with
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imprisonment for a term which may extend to seven years, or to
impute unchastity to a woman, shall be punished with imprisonment
of either description for a term which may extend to seven years, or
with fine, or with both.
6. This Court has referred to the decision of the Apex Court
in State of Haryana v. Bhajan Lal, reported in 1992 Supp
(1) SCC 335, wherein the Apex Court has laid down the
guidelines governing the exercise of inherent powers under
Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure which are
reproduced hereinbelow:
"102. In the backdrop of the interpretation of the various relevant
provisions of the Code under Chapter XIV and of the principles of
law enunciated by this Court in a series of decisions relating to the
exercise of the extraordinary power under Article 226 or the
inherent powers under Section 482 of the Code which we have
extracted and reproduced above, we have given the following
categories of cases by way of illustration wherein such power could
be exercised either to prevent abuse of the process of any court or
otherwise to secure the ends of justice, though it may not be
possible to lay down any precise, clearly defined and sufficiently
channelised and inflexible guidelines or rigid formulae and to give
an exhaustive list of myriad kinds of cases wherein such power
should be exercised.
(i) Where the allegations made in the first information report or the
complaint, even if they are taken at their face value and accepted
in their entirety do not prima facie constitute any offence or make
out a case against the accused.
(ii) Where the allegations in the first information report and other
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materials, if any, accompanying the FIR do not disclose a cognizable
offence, justifying an investigation by police officers under Section
156(1) of the Code except under an order of a Magistrate within the
purview of Section 155(2) of the Code.
(iii) Where the uncontroverted allegations made in the FIR or
complaint and the evidence collected in support of the same do not
disclose the commission of any offence and make out a case
against the accused.
(iv) Where, the allegations in the FIR do not constitute a cognizable
offence but constitute only a non-cognizable offence, no
investigation is permitted by a police officer without an order of a
Magistrate as contemplated under Section 155(2) of the Code.
(v) Where the allegations made in the FIR or complaint are so
absurd and inherently improbable on the basis of which no prudent
person can ever reach a just conclusion that there is sufficient
ground for proceeding against the accused.
(vi) Where there is an express legal bar engrafted in any of the
provisions of the Code or the concerned Act (under which a criminal
proceeding is instituted) to the institution and continuance of the
proceedings and/or where there is a specific provision in the Code
or the concerned Act, providing efficacious redress for the
grievance of the aggrieved party.
(vii) Where a criminal proceeding is manifestly attended with mala
fide and/or where the proceeding is maliciously instituted with an
ulterior motive for wreaking vengeance on the accused and with a
view to spite him due to private and personal grudge."
7. On referring the above provisions and the facts of the
present case, it emerges that this is a case of honey trap and
not, in any manner, a case of rape. Keeping the video on,
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indulging into physical relations, sending friend request, time
and again accompanied the applicant is nothing but
consensual relations made by the complainant which was
subsequently used to extort the money. In that background,
the applicant cannot be sent for the trial for false allegations.
Therefore, this Court is of the opinion that the case of applicant
falls under the criteria (i) and (v) of the judgment in the case of
Bhajanlal (supra).
8. Resultantly, the present application is allowed. The FIR
being I-CR No.11210006210299 of 2021 registered with Dumas
Police Station, Surat, as well as all consequential proceedings
arising therefrom, are hereby quashed and set aside.
(M. K. THAKKER,J)
AMIT ITALIAN
