Pravesh Sharma And Others vs State Of Uttarakhand And Others

Sharad Kumar Sharma, J

The petitioners, as well as the complainant-respondent No. 4 are present in person before this Court. They have been duly identified by their respective counsels. The petitioners are alleged to be accused persons for commission of the offence registered as Case Crime No. 302 of 2019, as registered against them at at Police Station, Transit Camp, Rudrapur District Udham Singh Nagar under Sections 34, 147, 148, 452, 323, 354, 504 and 506 IPC. The writ petition is accompanied with the Compounding Application (CLMA No. 15900 of 2019), which has been duly signed by their counsels to the present criminal writ petition, as well as by the parties in person, supported by their respective affidavits.

The parties to the present writ petition had made a statement before this Court that since they are neighbourers, whatever differences they had resulting into the registration of the FIR that has been resolved amongst themselves amicably and the complainant-respondent No. 4 does not want to prosecute the present petitioners any further. As far as the offences which have been levelled against the present petitioners, most of the offences except the offence under Sections 147 and 148, all are compoundable under Section 320 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

The learned AGA has raised an objection to the effect that once the offence under Section 147 and 148 is held to be not compoundable, in such an eventuality, the compounding application filed under Section 320 of the Code of Criminal Procedure ought not to be allowed or taken into consideration by this Court.

Having registered the said objection as raised by the learned AGA, this Court is of the opinion that the powers granted to the constitutional Courts under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure and thereunder Article 226 of the Constitution of India, cannot be circumscribed and limited in its application by the provisions contained under Section 320 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, for the reason being for attaining dispensation of substantial justice, if there is a joint allegations levelled against the accused persons for commission of the various offences as narrated in the FIR, even if two of the offences, i.e. Sections 147 and 148 IPC, as in the instant case, which has been pointed out by the learned AGA, which are not compoundable, but considering the set of allegations as levelled in the FIR, and also in the compounding application, this Court is of the view that when the complainant himself does not want to prosecute the petitioners, and prosecution of accused itself will be a futile exercise and he does not want to litigate any further, forcing upon the litigants to face the trial for commission of an offence under Sections 147 and 148 of Cr.PC only, it would be an abuse and will result into an unnecessarily futile exercise, particularly, when the complainant himself is not interested to prosecute the petitioners for the said offences in view of the settlement arrived between them.

In that view of the matter, this Court is of the view that the compounding application, as filed by the parties to the writ petition deserves to be allowed and as a consequence thereto, in terms of the compounding application, and the affidavit filed in support thereto, the FIR as registered against the present petitioners being FIR No. 302 of 2019 under Sections 34, 147, 148, 452, 323, 354, 504 and 506 IPC, registered at P.S, Transit Camp, Rudrapur, District Udham Singh Nagar is hereby quashed.

The Writ Petition (Criminal) is allowed accordingly.

There would be no order as to cost.