Dinesh Kela And Ors vs State And Ors

Heard learned counsel representing the parties. Perused the material available on record.

The instant misc. petition has been filed by the accused petitioners Dinesh Kela and Jugal Kishore Kela seeking quashing of the FIR No.117/2019

registered at the Police Station Khandafalsa, Jodhpur for the offences under Sections 420, 460 and 120B of the IPC.

Briefly stated the facts as alleged in the impugned FIR lodged by the complainant-respondent No.2 are narrated herein below for the sake of ready

reference:

The FIR came to be lodged by the complainant Rakesh Rathi at the Police Station Khandafalsa on 15.06.2019 alleging inter alia that Dinesh Kela was

known to him since long. He was involved in money lending business. About a year and half ago, the complainant required money for his personal and

business purposes on which, he asked Dinesh Kela for hand-loan of Rs.1,00,000/-. Dinesh Kela gave him a sum of Rs.88,000/- after deducting a sum

of Rs.12,000/- towards future interest. At that time, Dileep Rathi was also present with the complainant. It was settled that loan would be repaid in ten

installments of Rs.10,000/- each. At the time of advancing loan, Dinesh Kela took three blank signed cheques of the complainant payable on his

Karnataka Bank account and a signed stamp, etc. by way of security. The complainant alleged that the intention of Dinesh Kela was to cheat him

right at the inception of the transaction. He repaid five loan installments to Rakesh Rathi son of Nandkishore Rathi after due affirmation from Dinesh

Kela. Remaining five installments were paid by the complainant personally to Dinesh Kela. As per the complainant, he had repaid the entire amount of

loan to Dinesh Kela who, with the intention of fraud and cheating, misused one of the cheques given by way of security by filling in a fictitious amount

of Rs.5,00,000/- and deposited the same in the bank account of his father Shri Jugal Kishore Kela. It was further alleged that Dinesh Kela was

threatening that he would also present the two other cheques and in this manner, he was attempting to blackmail the complainant. On the basis of this

report, the impugned FIR No.117/2019 came to be registered against the petitioners for the offences under Sections 420, 460 and 120B of the IPC and

investigation was commenced.

As per the factual report placed on record, the investigating officer had, during the course of investigation, collected material to the effect that there

was no monetary transaction between the complainant and Jugal Kishore Kela and that the cheque in question had, as a matter of fact, been given by

the complainant Rakesh Rathi to the accused petitioner Dinesh Kela who misused it by getting the same presented in his father's bank account by

filling in a fictitious amount of Rs.5,00,000/-.

Learned counsel Shri Ravindra Kumar Purohit representing the petitioners placed reliance on the following judgments in support of the contention

that prima-facie ingredients of the offences alleged are not made out against the petitioners from the highest allegations as set out in the impugned

FIR:

(i) Prof. R.K. Vijaysarthi & Anr. vs. Sudha Seetharam & Anr, reported in 2019(2) R.Cr.D. 191 (SC);

(ii) M/s. Eicher Tractor Ltd. & Ors., vs. Harihar Singh & Anr. reported in (2008)16 SCC 763;

(iii) Kiran Bhai Kapadiya & Ors. vs. State of Rajasthan & Anr. reported in 2017 (4) R.Cr.D. 489 (Raj.); and

(iv) Vinod Natesan vs. State of Kerala & Ors., reported in (2019)2 SCC 401; and (4 of 5) [CRLMP-3276/2019]

After going through the ratio of the judgments relied upon by the counsel representing the petitioners, I am of the opinion that the facts discussed

therein are totally distinguishable from the facts of the case at hand. Counsel for the petitioners has failed to convince the Court that there existed any

kind of fiduciary relationship between the petitioner Jugal Kishore and the complainant Rakesh Rathi. The petitioner Dinesh Kela appeared before the

I.O. but he has not submitted any document or record which can show even by semblance that the complainant had any monetary dealing with the

petitioner Jugal Kishore Kela so as to justify the cheque of Rs.5,00,000/-. Thus, clearly an attempt has been made by the accused petitioners to cheat

the complainant by misusing the cheque of the complainant by filling in a fictitious amount of Rs.5,00,000/- which gives a strong indication regarding

conspiracy hatched by both of them. The investigating officer has also collected evidence to the effect that the petitioner Dinesh Kela is indulged in

another similar incident of fraud by misusing the cheque of one Mukesh Birla for which FIR No.89/2019 was registered against him at the Police

Station Khandafalsa.

After having heard and considered the submissions advanced by the petitioners' counsel, the learned Public Prosecutor as well as the complainant's

counsel and, after going through the impugned FIR and the factual report submitted on record, this Court is of the opinion that the conclusion drawn by

the investigating officer regarding existence of convincing material showing commission of offences under Sections 420, 406 and 120B IPC against

the petitioners, is absolutely justified.

In view of the discussion made herein above, I am of the view that it is not a fit case warranting exercise of this Court's inherent powers under

Section 482 Cr.P.C. for quashing the impugned FIR at the inception.

Accordingly, the misc. petition as well as stay application are dismissed as being devoid of merit.