[Cites 11, Cited by 0]
Orissa High Court
Balabhadra Misra vs State Of Odisha & Anr. ..... Opposite ... on 3 February, 2026
Author: Sanjeeb K Panigrahi
Bench: Sanjeeb K Panigrahi
IN THE HIGH COURT OF ORISSA AT CUTTACK
CRLMC No.361 of 2026
Balabhadra Misra ..... Petitioner (s)
Mr. Soubhagya Kumar Dash,
Advocate
-versus-
State of Odisha & Anr. ..... Opposite Party (s)
Ms. Gayatri Patra, ASC
CORAM:
THE HON'BLE DR. JUSTICE SANJEEB K PANIGRAHI
ORDER
Order No. 03.02.2026
01.
1. This matter is taken up through hybrid arrangement.
2. The Petitioner has filed this CRLMC with a prayer to
quash the entire proceeding and the order dated 17.06.2019
passed by the learned Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate,
Berhampur in G.R Case No.1591 of 2018 arising out of Mahila
P.S. Case No.63 of 2018.
3. The Petitioner and the Opposite Party No.2 is present
before this Court in person.
4. Learned counsel for the Petitioner submits that the
matter has been amicably settled between the parties. In the
meantime, they have filed a case under Section 13-B of the
Hindu Marriage Act, wherein they have sought for mutual
divorce. A Joint Affidavit has been filed to that effect which
shall form a part of the record. The contents of the Joint
Affidavit is extracted hereinbelow: -
"1. That the petitioner has filed the present
CRLMC seeking quashing of the entire criminal
proceeding including the order dated 17.06.2019
passed by the learned Sub-Divisional Judicial
Magistrate, Berhampur, in G.R. Case No. 1591 of
2018 corresponding to Mahila P.S.Case No.
63/2018 whereby cognizance has been taken for the
offences under Sections 498-A/294/323/406/506/34
of the Indian Penal Code read with Section 4 of the
Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961.
2. That due to matrimonial discord, the
Opposite Party No.2, being the informant, had
lodged the above-noted FIR before the Mahila Police
Station, Berhampur, which resulted in the present
criminal proceeding.
3. That the petitioner No.1 and the Opposite
Party No.2 are legally married husband and wife,
and no child was born out of the wedlock.
4. That the disputes between the parties were
purely matrimonial and personal in nature, arising
out of misunderstandings between the husband and
wife.
5. That pursuant to the settlement, the
petitioner and Opposite Party No.2 have mutually
decided to dissolve their marriage and have already
filed appropriate proceedings for divorce by mutual
consent before the learned Judge Family Court,
Berhampur which was registered as C.P.No. 12 of
2026.
6. That the Opposite Party No.2 states that she
has no objection if the entire criminal proceeding
arising out of Mahila P.S. Case No.63 of 2018
corresponding to G.R. Case No.1591 of 2018 is
quashed by this Hon'ble Court, as continuation of
the same would serve no useful purpose and only
result in unnecessary harassment to both parties.
7. That both the deponents are filing this
affidavit voluntarily, without any coercion, undue
influence, or pressure from any quarter, and out of
their own free will, for the ends of justice and
convenience of the parties.
8. That the facts stated above are true to the best
of our knowledge and belief, based on records, and
nothing material has been suppressed.
9. That the contents of this affidavit have been
read over and explained to us in a language known
to us, and having understood the same, we have
signed this affidavit voluntarily.
10. That the facts stated above are all true to the
best of our knowledge and belief and are based on
record and we further declare that we have not
suppressed any material fact and the affidavit is
made in our free mind and our own volition.
11. That the contents of this petition have been
read over and explained to the deponents having
understood the same they put their respective
signature."
5. Having considered the contents of the joint affidavit filed by
the Petitioner and the Opposite Party No.2/Complainant, it is
evident that the dispute between the parties arose out of a
matrimonial discord, which has since been amicably resolved and
culminated in a mutual settlement. The parties have consciously
decided to put an end to all pending litigations and to move forward
in their respective lives. In such circumstances, continuation of the
criminal proceedings would neither advance the cause of justice nor
serve any fruitful purpose. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in Gian
Singh v. State of Punjab & Anr1 has authoritatively held that
criminal proceedings emanating from matrimonial and family
disputes, which are essentially private in nature and do not have a
serious impact on society at large, may be quashed in exercise of
inherent powers when the parties have settled their differences. The
said principle has been consistently followed by this Court in
Lokanath @ Anadi Sethi and four others v. State of Orissa and four
others 2and Sansuri alias Khageswar Lenka and another v. State of
Orissa & Anr3. Applying the aforesaid ratio to the facts of the present
case, this Court is of the considered view that allowing the
proceedings to continue would amount to an abuse of the process of
law.
6. In view of the joint affidavit filed by the parties and the
undisputed fact that the matrimonial dispute has been conclusively
resolved and the marriage dissolved by mutual consent under
Section 13-B of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, this Court is satisfied
that the continuation of the criminal proceedings would serve no
purpose and would amount to an abuse of the process of law. Thus,
guided by the principles laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court
in Gian Singh(supra) which have been consistently followed by this
Court, this Court deems it a fit case for exercise of inherent
1 (2012) 10 SCC 303
2 2014 (II) OLR 29
3 2014 (II) OLR 452
jurisdiction under Section 482 CrPC to secure the ends of justice.
Accordingly, the application is allowed and the order dated order
dated 17.06.2019 passed by the learned Sub-Divisional Judicial
Magistrate, Berhampur in G.R Case No.1591 of 2018 arising out
of Mahila P.S. Case No.63 of 2018, is hereby quashed.
7. This CRLMC is, accordingly, disposed of.
(Dr. Sanjeeb K Panigrahi)
Judge
Gitanjali
