Smt. Vimla and others vs State of Uttarakhand and another

Hon''ble Servesh Kumar Gupta, J.—By way of this petition, the prayer has been made to quash and set aside the chargesheet of Criminal Case No.2424 of 2009, titled as State Vs. Neeraj Kumar and two others, pending in the court of Judicial Magistrate, Roorkee, District Haridwar. The said chargesheet, whereupon the order of cognizance dated 17.7.2009 was issued by learned Magistrate, was submitted by the police for the offence of Sections 323, 504 and 506 IPC and 498-A IPC, coupled with Section 3/4 of Dowry Prohibition Act, pertaining to P.S. Gangnahar, Roorkee, Distt. Haridwar.

Having heard the learned counsel of either party, it appears that Smt. Pooja espoused with Sri Neeraj on 29.4.2007 at Roorkee. Her father commemorated the wedding to the best of his pecuniary capability and expensed as much as Rs.7.00 lacs in the same. He offered all sorts of household use dowry in the marriage but that could not content Sri Neeraj and his family members, so the bitterness developed ever since the beginning of blissful days of the wedding. This sour relationship was escalated which resulted into the expulsion of Smt. Pooja from her matrimonial house within nine months of the marriage on 23.1.2008, while she was on her family way. She was constrained to return to her father?s house where she was blessed with a male baby on 8.4.2008. All the expenses of the labour were borne out by the father of Smt. Pooja and even more, it is alleged that none turned up from her matrimonial house to have a glance of the newborn baby. Mediations were strived, which resulted into the return of Smt. Pooja to her matrimonial home on 6.7.2008, but within a week of her return, she was again ousted on 13.7.2008 with the same atrocious demands and conduct at the hands of the members of her in-laws house. It is an admitted fact that on 29.1.2009, Sri Neeraj, along with his parents and other relatives, visited the native place of Smt. Pooja to fetch her. They all tried to persuade her, but she flatly refused to have any contact with Sri Neeraj henceforth. This fact has been admitted in paragraph no.11 of the petition filed by Sri Neeraj against Smt. Pooja for the restitution of conjugal rights on dated 10.2.2009.

It has been argued on behalf of applicants that no sooner did Smt. Pooja receive a notice of the above petition filed u/s 9 of the Hindu Marriage Act, she moved an application u/s 156(3) Cr.P.C. to lodge an FIR, not only against the applicants but also against her sister in law Smt. Uma and her husband Yash Kumar. The Additional Family Court Judge at Roorkee made the efforts for reconciliation on dated 22.5.2009, in the petition launched by Sri Neeraj u/s 9 of Hindu Marriage Act, as stated above but the same could not be successful because Smt. Pooja was bent upon to settle her family with Sri Neeraj, in segregation of his parents.

It has been argued on behalf of Smt. Pooja that in fact she tried to lodge the FIR in January 2009 when Sri Neeraj, along with his parents and other relatives, visited her native place on 29.1.2009 and beat her with slaps and fists, hurling abuses. The police did not lodge her FIR, so on 30.1.2009, she sent the report to Senior Superintendent of Police, Haridwar through registered post but that too could not yield any result. So, she was constrained to move an application u/s 156(3) Cr.P.C. on dated 19.5.2009 to the Magistrate concerned. The FIR could be lodged only after the intervention by the Court on dated 16.6.2009 bearing crime no.137/2009 against all the five persons, but after the investigation, the chargesheet no.132/2009 was submitted on 8.7.2009, only against the applicants, whereupon the learned Magistrate has taken the cognizance.

It has been argued on behalf of the applicants that Smt. Pooja did not file any medical examination report of her alleged beating at the hands of the applicants and others. This argument does not have any substance in view of the fact that every time, the beating by one or two slaps or fists would not injure the victim to such an extent as to drive him/her for medical examination. Smt. Pooja has categorically stated that this reprehensible conduct, on the part of the applicants, was complained of to the Police as well as to the S.S.P. Haridwar immediately, but in vain. In the opinion of this Court, the Investigating Officer has already scraped the names of other two persons, who might have been implicated in the FIR due to exaggerated version on the part of Smt. Pooja, and rest of the veracity of the chargesheet has to be decided on the anvil of the trial, to be conducted in the court below. This Court does not find it a fit case for quashing of the chargesheet. So, this petition is meritless and deserves to be dismissed. It is dismissed thereby vacating the stay order dated 2.9.2009, passed by this Court. Let the trial court be informed accordingly to proceed ahead.