Date of Judgement:
02 September 2021
Coram:
Justice Indira Banerjee
Justice J K Maheswari
Parties:
Appellant – Randheer Singh
Respondent – The State of UP
Subject
A civil suit should not be made a criminal suit. It must be made sure by the courts that criminal proceedings should not be used as a harassment tool.
Legal Provisions
- Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure - Nothing in this Code shall bedeemed to limit or affect the inherent powers of the High Court to make such orders as may be necessary to give effect to any order under this Code, or to prevent abuse of the process of any Court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice.
Overview
- The facts of the case are that before the High Court under Section 482 of CrPC the respondent herein alleged that the sale of property to appellant by the power of attorney appointed by the seller was illegal as the appointed power of attorney on the basis of false power of attorney of the seller executed the sale deed. Feeling aggrieved by the same, the appellant preferred appeal before this court.
Issue
- Whether there was any criminal offence brought out in the FIR?
Judgement Analysis
- The court observed that the averments were vague and there was no criminal case brought out. The court also observed the chargesheet and stated that the chargesheet was completely vague. Although the chargesheet need not provide the entire unfolding of events but this chargesheet did not even provide a glimpse as to its investigation. Even the main witness, original owner of the property, was not cited as a witness.
- An illegal power of attorney can have multiple interpretation like the power of attorney was obtained fraudulently or the sale was made fraudulently using the power of attorney making the situation ambiguous.
- In Uma Shankar Gopalika V. State of Bihar (2009), the court held that the complaint in the case did prima facie disclose any criminal offence and the dispute was held to be purely a civil dispute.
- This court after observing the facts and evidence felt that the criminal proceedings are used to harass the other party and an alleged civil wrong is made out be a criminal wrong.
- The court also reiterated that Section 482 should be used in exceptional circumstances and when neither the FIR nor the charge sheet failed to disclose a criminal offence, such suit should be dismissed.
- Hence, the court allowed the appeal and set-aside the order of the High Court.
Conclusion
Section 482 was established to prevent and prohibit abuse of court process and render justice. It should be used only in exceptional cases to secure justice. Hence, the limitation set upon it is the section itself, i.e., it should be sparingly used only to secure justice in exceptional cases. It should be exercised to prohibit abuse of court process by wrongly portraying a civil dispute as a criminal suit to harass other parties to the dispute.
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Questions:
- Which Article in the Constitution provides for the Supreme Court to pass such decree or make such order as is necessary for doing complete justice in any cause or matter pending before it?
