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TMI Blog1996 (2) TMI 556X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cement of the roof and the alleged repairs/alterations were permissible under the building bye-laws and required no formal order of sanction and, therefore, the appellant could not be said to have carried out any unauthorized construction and sought an injunction against Respondent No. 1 restraining it from demolishing the alleged unauthorized construction . After contest, the suit was decreed. It was found that notice for demolition had not been properly served. Respondent No.1 was restrained from demolishing the property of the appellant except in due process of law . The Junior Engineer of respondent No.1 filed three more reports on 21.8.1989 and 4.9.1989 and 17.11.1989 alleging further unauthorized constructions in the said property by the appellant. On the basis of those reports, Municipal Corporation of Delhi, respondent No.1, on 17th November, 1989 filed a criminal complaint (Case No. 533 of 1989) under Section 332 read with Section 461 of the Delhi Municipal , Corporation Act, 1957 (hereinafter the Act ) against the appellant in the Court of Sh. R.S. Khanna, Metropolitan Magistrate, Delhi. The appellant moved two applications before the Metropolitan Magistrate, Delhi - on ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e years. With a view to answer the question noted in the opening part of our judgment, it is necessary to notice some of the relevant provisions of the Act and the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 (hereinaftar Cr.P.C.). Section 466(a) of the Act makes Cr.P.C. applicable to the proceedings under the Act and makes an offence under Section 313 of the Act cognizable. Section 467 deals with the prosecution of offences and reads as under: 467. Prosecutions - Save as otherwise provided in this Act, no court shall proceed to the trial of any offence . (a) under sub-section (54 of section 313 or section 332 or subsection (1) of section 333 or subsection (1) of section 334 or section 343 or section 344 or section 345 or section 347 except on the complaint of or upon information received from such officer of the Corporation, not being below the rank of a Deputy Commissioner, as may be appointed by the Administrator ; xxx xxx xxx Section 469 of the Act reads as follows: 469. Municipal Magistrate (1) The Central Government may appoint one or more magistrates of the first class for the trial of offences against this Act and against any rule, regulation or bye-l ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the time being in force regulating the manner or place of investigating, inquiring into, trying or otherwise dealing with such offences. Section 5 Cr.P.C provides as follows : 5. Saving. - Nothing contained in this Code shall, in the absence of a specific provision to the contrary, affect any special or local law for the time being in force, or any special jurisdiction or power conferred, or any special form of procedure prescribed, by any other law for the time being in force. Section 6 Cr.P.C. reads as follows: Classes of Criminal Courts.- Besides the High Courts and the Courts constituted under any law, other than this Code, there shall be, in every State the following classes of Criminal Courts, namely- (i) Courts of Session ; (ii) Judicial Magistrates of the first class and, in any metropolitan area, Metropolitan Magistrates ; (iii) Judicial Magistrates of the second class : and (iv) Executive Magistrates. Sections 8 and 16 of Cr.P.C deal with the courts of Metropolitan Magistrates and inter alia provide that in every metropolitan area, the State Government may, after consultation with the High Court establish courts of Metropolitan Magistrates ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... h Magistrates are called Municipal Magistrates and shall besides the trial of offences under the Act, rules, regulations or bye-laws framed thereunder, exercise all other functions of a Magistrate as provided in the Act and are not precluded from trying offences under any other law as well. Every Municipal Magistrate appointed under Section 469 of the Act by the Central Government is a Judicial Magistrate of the First Class and shall be deemed to be a Magistrate appointed under Section 12 Cr.P.C. Thus, no person who is not a Judicial Magistrate of the first Class can be conferred powers of a Municipal Magistrate to try offences under the Act, rules, regulations or bye-laws made under the Act. The bar of jurisdiction of ordinary criminal courts to try of offences under the Act is brought about by Section 470 of the Act which inter alia provides that all offences under the Act, whether committed within or without the limits of Delhi shall be cognizable by a Municipal Megistrate. Vide Section 467 of the Act no Court shall proceed to the trial of any offence specified in the section, including an offence under Section 332 of the Act except on a complaint of or information received f ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... all have the jurisdiction and powers to try the offences under the Act in accordance with the procedure envisaged by Section 467 of the Act and in accordance with the limitation the time prescribed for initiation of the criminal proceedings under Section 471 of the Act. This interpretation is in accord with the position that every offence committed under the Indian Penal Code or under any other law for the time being in force must be tried and an accused cannot be permitted to raise any objection with regard to the forum for trial of the offence, where the specific forum has not been constituted under the Act because the law does not contemplate an offence, to go untried. Where, no court of a Municipal Magistrate has been constituted under Section 469 of the Act and no Notification has also been issued conferring the powers of a Municipal Magistrate on a Particular Judicial Magistrate of the First Class or a Metropolitan Magistrate, as the case may be, the jurisdiction of an ordinary criminal court to take cognizance of the offences committed under the Act, rules, regulations or bye-laws made thereunder is exercisable by the courts of general jurisdiction established to try offence ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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