2017 (8) TMI 198 - HC - Indian Laws

Offence under Negotiable Instrument Act - scope of the enquiry carried on by this Court under Section 482 of Cr.P.C - Held that - In view of the factual matrix of the case and admissibility of the certain documents alleged to have been executed by the accused namely legal notice dated 03.05.2013 issued by the first accused wherein, he admitted the liability and the truth and genuineness of the letter of undertaking which is alleged to have been given by the second accused for the first accused are all can be gone into only by the trial Court and therefore, this Court is of the considered view that the contention of the learned counsel for the petitioner that the present being petitioners are not signatory to be cheque and hence, the proceedings against that needs to be quashed cannot be entertained at this stage, in view of factual matrix of the case. In view of the aforesaid of the facts of the case and documents relied upon by the respondent/complainant herein. The truth and genuineness of the documents relied upon by the respondent/complainant can only be gone into at the time of trial before the trial Court and with these observations, this Court is of the considered view that this Criminal Original Petition as devoid of merits and same is rejected. It is open to the petitioners/accused 3,4,and 6 to raise objections as to the admissibility and reliability of the documents filed by the respondent/complainant before the trial Court and it is hereby made clear that observations made in the preceding paragraphs is only for a limited extent to determine the issue involved in this case and trial Court shall proceed with a trial without being influenced by the observation of this Court in the preceding paragraphs.

Summary

Issues:
Quashing of complaint under Section 138 of Negotiable Instrument Act based on allegations against the petitioners.

Analysis:
The petitioners, accused 3, 4, and 6, filed a quash petition under Section 482 of Cr.P.C. to challenge a complaint filed by the respondent in C.C.No.256 of 2013 under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instrument Act. The respondent alleged that the petitioners, along with the 5th accused, partners of 2nd accused Sai Farms and Feeds, issued 14 cheques to discharge a liability, which were returned as "payment stopped." The petitioners contended that they were neither signatories nor partners of the 2nd accused and should not be implicated. The respondent argued that all accused, including the petitioners, admitted liability through legal notices and undertakings. The court examined documents, including cheques and legal notices, and observed that the truth and genuineness of the documents could only be determined during trial. The court held that the petitioners' argument for quashing proceedings based on not being signatories to the cheque could not be entertained at that stage, as the trial court needed to assess the documents' admissibility and reliability.

The court noted that the documents' truth and genuineness could only be assessed during the trial. The court emphasized that its observations were limited to determining the issues in the case and directed the trial court to proceed without influence from its observations. Consequently, the Criminal Original Petition was dismissed, and the trial court was instructed to complete the trial within six months from the date of the order. The petitioners were granted the opportunity to challenge the documents' admissibility and reliability during the trial, and it was clarified that the court's observations were for a limited extent to address the issues in the case without influencing the trial court's proceedings.