Uttarakhand High Court
Rajpal Singh vs State Of Uttarakhand And Others on 2 June, 2025
2025:UHC:4537
IN THE HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND
AT NAINITAL
Criminal Misc.Application No.17 of 2021
Rajpal Singh ......Applicant
Vs.
State of Uttarakhand and others .....Respondents
Presence:
Mr. Bharat Tiwari, learned counsel for the Applicant.
Mr. G.C. Joshi, learned AGA, for the State of Uttarakhand.
Mr. T.P.S. Takuli, learned counsel for the private Respondent.
Hon'ble Ashish Naithani, J.
1. The present application under Section 482 of the Code of
Criminal Procedure, 1973, has been filed by the applicant, Rajpal
Singh, seeking quashing of the charge-sheet dated 17.08.2020
submitted in Criminal Case No. 2654 of 2020 under Sections 304A IPC
and 56 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, Police Station Betalghat,
District Nainital, as well as the cognizance/summoning order dated
17.11.2020 passed by the learned Civil Judge (Junior Division)/Judicial
Magistrate, Nainital, and all proceedings arising therefrom.
2. The factual background of the case, as narrated in the FIR lodged
by respondent no.3, Kheem Singh, is that on 25.05.2020, during the
COVID-19 pandemic, the family of the informant was quarantined at
the Primary School, Talli Sethi, Betalghat. It is alleged that the
applicant, Rajpal Singh, who was posted as Rajasva Up-Nirikshak
(Patwari) of the area, had been informed about the poor condition of
the quarantine centre and the presence of wild grass and forest area.
Yet, no action was taken to shift the family to a safer location.
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Ashish Naithani J.
2025:UHC:4537
3. The informant's niece, aged about six years, was bitten by a
snake in the early hours of 25.05.2020, and despite attempts to contact
the applicant, there was no response. The child was taken to the
hospital with the help of the previous area patwari, but she succumbed
to the snake bite. Based on these allegations, FIR No. 01/2020 was
registered under Sections 188, 269, 270, 304 IPC and 56 of the Disaster
Management Act, 2005.
4. Learned counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant has
been falsely implicated in the matter. It is contended that the applicant,
as Patwari, had no role in managing the quarantine centre, which was
the responsibility of the Gram Pradhan and the Gram Panchayat Vikas
Adhikari. It is submitted that in fact, FIR No. 02/2020 was also lodged
against Umesh Joshi, Gram Panchayat Vikas Adhikari, and Karan
Singh, Assistant Teacher, who were in charge of the quarantine centre,
and they have been charge-sheeted separately. The applicant's
suspension and departmental proceedings have been challenged and
responded to in due course.
5. The learned counsel further contends that the entire allegations,
even if taken at face value, do not make out an offence under Section
304A IPC, as there is no direct or proximate nexus between the alleged
act of the applicant and the unfortunate death of the child. It is argued
that the applicant was neither present at the spot nor in a position of
direct supervisory control over the quarantine centre. The applicant has
an unblemished service record since 1998 and has been made a
scapegoat merely on the basis of conjecture and presumption.
6. On the other hand, the learned State counsel opposes the
application, submitting that the material collected during the
investigation, including the statements of witnesses under Section 161
Cr.P.C., supports the prosecution's case. It is contended that the
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Criminal Misc. Application No.17of 2021, Rajpal Singh Vs State of Uttarakhand and Others -
Ashish Naithani J.
2025:UHC:4537
applicant was the revenue officer responsible for the area and was
aware of the unsafe condition of the quarantine centre. The State argues
that the applicant's alleged neglect of duty amounts to gross negligence
under Section 304A IPC, as the death of the minor girl was a direct
result of his failure to act despite warnings.
7. After hearing the learned counsel for the parties and on perusal of
the records, it is necessary to examine whether the allegations, taken at
face value, disclose the commission of an offence under Section 304A
IPC or Section 56 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005, and whether
the prosecution of the applicant amounts to an abuse of the process of
law.
8. Section 304-A IPC applies when death is caused by a rash or
negligent act not amounting to culpable homicide. It is well settled that for
an offence under Section 304A IPC, there must be a direct, proximate, and
causal link between the alleged act or omission and the death. Mere
negligence or dereliction in a general sense, without a specific act or
omission directly causing death, is insufficient.
9. In the present case, the core allegation is that the applicant, as the
Patwari, failed to take action on complaints regarding the unsafe condition
of the quarantine centre. However, the material placed on record,
including the guidelines issued by the State Government, indicates that the
responsibility for maintaining and managing quarantine centres was
primarily entrusted to the Gram Pradhan and Gram Panchayat Vikas
Adhikari, not the applicant. The applicant's role as a revenue officer,
though important in land-related matters, did not extend to direct
supervision of quarantine facilities or their upkeep.
10. The filing of a separate FIR (No. 02/2020) and chargesheet
against Umesh Joshi, Gram Panchayat Vikas Adhikari, and Karan Singh,
Assistant Teacher, further underscores that the primary responsibility for
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Ashish Naithani J.
2025:UHC:4537
the quarantine centre lay with them. The applicant's arrest and
prosecution, therefore, appear to be based on assumptions rather than
specific, proximate acts of negligence.
11. The Hon'ble Supreme Court, in Jacob Mathew v. State of Punjab,
(2005) 6 SCC 1, has held that to fasten criminal liability under Section
304A IPC, there must be gross negligence or recklessness of such a degree
that it can be said to be a crime against the State and deserving of
punishment. A mere error of judgment or an administrative lapse, without
more, cannot attract criminal liability.
12. The State, while emphasizing the applicant's alleged knowledge
of the unsafe conditions, does not cite any direct act or omission by the
applicant that can be said to have proximately caused the death. The
evidence, as stated, consists of statements of family members and other
witnesses who merely allege inaction or absence of the applicant. Still,
no specific material demonstrates that his action or inaction directly
resulted in the fatal snake bite.
13. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in State of Haryana v. Bhajan Lal,
1992 Supp (1) SCC 335, has clearly laid down that where the allegations
in the FIR, even if taken at face value, do not disclose a cognizable
offence, the FIR and consequent proceedings can be quashed under the
inherent powers of the High Court. This case squarely falls within the said
category.
14. Furthermore, the invocation of Section 56 of the Disaster
Management Act, 2005, against the applicant appears to be misplaced, as
no material has been brought on record to demonstrate that the applicant
wilfully disobeyed any specific lawful order made under the Act.
15. In light of the above discussion, this Court is of the considered
opinion that the allegations against the applicant do not disclose the
commission of any offence under Section 304A IPC or Section 56 of
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Ashish Naithani J.
2025:UHC:4537
the Disaster Management Act, 2005. Continuation of the proceedings
would amount to harassment and an abuse of the process of law.
ORDER
The application is allowed. The charge-sheet dated
17.08.2020 submitted in Criminal Case No. 2654 of 2020 under
Sections 304A IPC and 56 of the Disaster Management Act, 2005,
Police Station Betalghat, District Nainital, the order of cognizance
dated 17.11.2020 passed by the learned Civil Judge (Junior
Division)/Judicial Magistrate, Nainital, and all proceedings arising
therefrom, are hereby quashed.
(Ashish Naithani J.)
02.06.2024
NR/
Criminal Misc. Application No.17of 2021, Rajpal Singh Vs State of Uttarakhand and Others -
Ashish Naithani J.
