Crl. Misc. No. M- 8323 of 2009 -1-
In the High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh
Crl. Misc. No. M- 8323 of 2009
Date of Decision:May 25, 2009
Ashok Moudgil and another
---Petitioners
versus
State of Haryana and another
---Respondents
Coram: HON'BLE MRS. JUSTICE SABINA
***
Present: Mr. A.K.Goyal, Advocate,
for the petitioners
Ms. Maloo Chahal, DAG, Haryana
Mr.Karan Singh, Advocate,
for respondent No. 2
***
SABINA, J.
Petitioners have filed this petition under Section 482 of the
Code of Criminal Procedure (hereinafter referred to as ‘Cr.P.C.’)for quashing
of FIR No. 28 dated 30.1.23007 under Sections 406, 420,467, 468, 471,
506 of the Indian Penal Code registered at Police Station,Beri District
Jhajjar (annexure P-1) and consequential proceedings arising therefrom on
the basis of compromise dated 28.6.2007 (annexure P-2).
Crl. Misc. No. M- 8323 of 2009 -2-
Learned counsel for the petitioner has submitted that now with
the intervention of respectables parties have entered into a compromise
dated 28.6.2007 (Annexure P-2).
Respondent No. 2 is present in person along with his counsel
and has admitted the contents of the compromise(Annexure P-2). He has
stated that he has no objection if the FIR in question is quashed.
As per the Full Bench judgment of this Court in Kulwinder
Singh and others vs. State of Punjab, 2007 (3) RCR (Criminal) 1052,
High Court has power under Section 482 Cr.P.C. to allow the compounding
of non-compoundable offence and quash the prosecution where the High
Court felt that the same was required to prevent the abuse of the process of
any Court or to otherwise secure the ends of justice. This power of
quashing is not confined to matrimonial disputes alone.
Hon’ble the Apex Court in the case of Nikhil Merchant vs.
Central bureau of Investigation and another JT 2008 (9) SC 192 in paras
23 and 24 has held as under:-
“23. In the instant case, the disputes between the Company and
the Bank have been set at rest on the basis of the compromise
arrived at by them whereunder the dues of the Bank have been
cleared and the Bank does not appear to have any further claim
against the Company. What, however, remains is the fact that
certain documents were alleged to have been created by the
appellant herein in order to avail of credit facilities beyond the
limit to which the Company was entitled. The dispute
involved herein has overtones of a civil dispute with certain
criminal facets. The question which is required to be answered
Crl. Misc. No. M- 8323 of 2009 -3-in this case is whether the power which independently lies with
this court to quash the criminal proceedings pursuant to the
compromise arrived at, should at all be exercised?
24.On an overall view of the facts as indicated hereinabove and
keeping in mind the decision of this Court in B.S.Joshi’s case
(supra) and the compromise arrived at between the Company
and the Bank as also clause 11 of the consent terms filed in the
suit filled by the Bank, we are satisfied that this is a fit case
where technicality should not be allowed to stand in the way in
the quashing of the criminal proceedings, since, in our view,
the continuance of the same after the compromise arrived at
between the parties would be a futile exercise.”
Since the parties have arrived at a compromise, no useful
purpose would be served by continuing the criminal proceedings, in
question.
Accordingly this petition is allowed. FIR No. 28 dated
30.1.23007 under Sections 406, 420,467, 468, 471, 506 of the Indian
Penal Code registered at Police Station,Beri District Jhajjar (annexure P-1)
and all consequential proceeding arising therefrom are quashed.
(SABINA)
JUDGE
May 25, 2009
PARAMJIT