Dhirendra Kumar Jha 01 June 2018

Is it necessary to appear before court

I was a complainant in one criminal case in my previous company. I left that company four years ago. Now I have received a subpoena from the court in that matter to appear before the court for evidence. Since I left that job four years back, I don't posess any document and/or information related to that case. Moreover I relocated to other place. What should I do? Whether it is necessary for me to comply with the subpoena? Is it necessary for me to appear in person before court?

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Raghav Arora 01 June 2018

Hi! Thanks for the question! The answer to your query is in the section 256 of the Cr.P.C which states the procedure if the complainant does not apear in the court on summons. It is not necessary for you in a normal course to be present in this case as you are the one seeking a remedy against the respondent and moreover it has been 4 years since the proceedings. What happens in case you do not appear in the court on summons is that the respondent shall be aquitted by the court. So you don't have to worry about losing the documents and not appearing unless there is a counter case that you are being summoned for. So you are advised to be sure of the summon that has been served. Good Luck!