Nand Kishore Pandey and Another vs The State of Bihar

Mridula Mishra, J.—Heard learned Counsel for the Petitioners and learned Counsel appearing for the State.

Petitioners have filed this application u/s 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure with a prayer to quash the order dated 4.8.2003 by which the Special Judge, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, Bhojpur at Arrah has ordered to frame charges against the Petitioners in Sessions Trial No. 275 of 2001 (Udwant Nagar) Police Station Case No. 131 of 1996 u/s 328 of the I.P.C. and u/s 3(1)(i) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (hereinafter referred to as the Act).

The first information report was instituted against the Petitioners for alleged offence under Sections 341, 328 and 307 of the I.P.C. and Sections 3, 5 and 10 of the Harijan Atyachar Adhiniam. After investigation, cognizance was taken of the offence under Sections 341, 328 and 307 of the I.P.C. as well as Sections 3, 5 and 10 of the Harijan Atrocities Act against the Petitioners. The Petitioners filed an application in course of investigation for awaiting the chemical examination report of the stomach wash of the informant from the Forensic Science Laboratory, Patna before taking cognizance of the offence but the C.J.M. Arrah rejected the aforesaid application and took cognizance under the aforesaid Sections on 6.7.1999. The Petitioners assailed the order of the C.J.M. dated 6.7.1999 in Cr. Revision No. 143/1999 before the Sessions Judge which was also dismissed with observation that from the chemical report no offence u/s 307 of the I.P.C. is made out against the Petitioners. Petitioners filed discharge petition before the Special Judge on 3.1.2002 on the ground that the Petitioners have been falsely implicated in this case.

Learned Counsel for the Petitioners has drawn my attention to the order dated 4.8.2003, passed in Sessions Trial No. 275 of 2001 by which the Special Judge, Arrah has ordered for framing charges against the Petitioners u/s 328 of the I.P.C. and Section 3(1)(i) of the Act.

Learned Counsel for the Petitioners has assailed the order taking cognizance u/s 3(1)(i) of the Act on the ground that from a bare reading of the first information report itself it is apparent that no offence u/s 3(1)(i) of the Act is made out. It has been submitted that atrocity is defined u/s 2(1)(a) of the Act which means an offence punishable u/s 3 of the Act and the word offence u/s 3(1)(i) of the Act means the act of a person who not being a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe forces a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe to drink or eat any inedible or obnoxious substance. As such, unless any person coming from Scheduled caste or Scheduled tribe is forced to consume any material which is obnoxious or poisonous it cannot be said to be an offence u/s 3(1)(i) of the Act. From chemical examination report it is apparent that the material which was found in the stomach of the informant was not poisonous. The chemical examination of the stomach wash of the informant discloses that "except Ethyl Alcohol which is the intoxicating ingredient of all alcoholic beverages, no metallic, alcoloidal, glycosidal, pestioidal or volatile poison could be detected in the contents of glass bottle described above." This is sufficient to say that no offence u/s 3(1)(i) of the Act is made out against the Petitioners.

It has been also submitted by the learned Counsel for the Petitioners that 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 constitute any offence or make out a case against the accused the criminal proceeding must be quashed. In the present case, there was no material before the court concerned to frame charge against the Petitioners u/s 3(1)(i) of the Act or u/s 328 of the I.P.C. I find force in the submission made by the learned Counsel for the Petitioners. There is sufficient reason to interfere with the impugned order.

In the facts and circumstances of the case, the order dated 4.8.2003, passed by the Special Judge Bhojpur at Arrah in Sessions Trial No. 275 of 2001 is hereby quashed. The application is accordingly allowed.