Lalit Kumar and Others vs Sudershan Kumar

Jai Singh Sekhon, J.—Sudershan Kumar father of Mst. Naresh Kumari wife of Lalit Kumar had filed the complaint for offences under

Sections 498A and 406 of the Indian Penal Code against Lalit Kumar, husband of his daughter Naresh Kumari (Deceased), Banarsi Dass, father-

in-law, Harbans Kumari, mother-in-law along with four brothers of the husband, two wives of the brothers and three sisters of the husband, which

is pending in the Court of Judicial Magistrate at Karnal. The petitioners had been summoned by the trial Court vide impugned order. Copy

Annexure P-2, to face trial for the above referred offences. The petitioners through this petition seek the quashment of the complaint and other

proceedings resulting therefrom including the summoning order, inter alia on the ground that regarding the same allegations, a case was got

registered by the complainant himself at Police Station West Chandigarh against Lalit Kumar, Banarsi Dass and Harbans Rani on 25-5-1987,

while the complaint at Karnal was filed on 31-7-1987.

During the course of arguments, Mr. Ghai has added on the file a certified copy of the judgment by Shri M.S. Lobana, Additional Sessions

Judge, Chandigarh, whereby aforesaid three persons were acquitted vide order dated August 29, 1990, that is, during the pendency of the present

petition. Under the provisions of Section 300 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, Banarsi Dass, Lalit Kumar and Harbans Rani, petitioners, cannot

be tried for the same offence for which they had already been acquitted by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Chandigarh. So far as the case

of the remaining nine petitioners is concerned, it transpires that there is inherent improbability in the version of the complainant himself because if

these petitioners were actually involved in the alleged cruelty or misappropriation of the Stri Dhan of Naresh Kumari, deceased, their names would

have figured in the above referred first information report lodged by the father of the victim at Chandigarh that is prior in point of time. Thus the

prosecution of the above referred proceedings against the remaining none petitioners before the Judicial Magistrate, Karnal, is bound to end in

smoke in view of the order of acquittal of the Additional Sessions Judge, Chandigarh, of the remaining three petitioners regarding the same

allegations and the factum that the complainant has not imputed any overt act to these nine petitioners in the first information report lodged at

Chandigarh regarding the same incident.

Consequently, the above referred complaint and the summoning order of the trial Court are quashed by accepting this petition in order to avoid

the abuse of the process of the criminal court.