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TMI Blog2025 (4) TMI 1015X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ashing of FIR being RC No.13(E)/2008-CBI dated 08.12.2008 at Police Station, CBI, BS & FC, Mumbai as well as the charge sheet dated 26.05.2010 was dismissed. 2. The bare necessary facts in the present case are that between 1998-2005 Bank of Maharashtra sanctioned multiple credit facilities to the Appellants due to their strong financial standing. Beginning June 2005 onwards, the Appellant companies faced a financial crunch due to adverse market conditions, including the 2004 Surat floods, leading to the bank classifying their loans/credit facilities as Non-Performing Assets (hereinafter referred to as "NPA"). Bank of Maharashtra proceeded to file applications for recovery of the debt before the Debt Recovery Tribunal, Ahmedabad (hereinafter referred to as "DRT"). 3. During the pendency of these proceedings, Central Bureau of Investigation (hereinafter referred to as "CBI") on the basis of reliable information proceeded to register the above-referred FIR against the Appellants, proforma Respondents 3 and 4 as well as the Branch Manager of the Bank of Maharashtra for offences punishable under Section 420, 467, 468 and 471 read with 120B of the Indian Penal Code (hereinafter referre ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... having been paid by the Appellants. With the discharge of the civil liability, criminal proceedings should not be further continued. It is asserted that the continuation of the criminal proceedings after the settlement of the civil liability would be oppressive and would partake the character of lame prosecution. The chances of conviction are also very bleak specially when the allegations against the Bank Manager have been found to be not made out leading to the dropping of charges under the PC Act. 8. Counsel further contends that the Bank had no grievance, which would have been the aggrieved party. Neither FIR has been registered nor any criminal proceedings initiated against the appellants by the Bank of Maharashtra. However, the FIR has been registered suo motu by CBI. 9. Referring to the details of the amount as paid by the Appellants to the Bank vis-à-vis the principal amount disbursed, it is asserted that the sanctioned principal amount was Rs.14.20 Crores and the amount which has been paid in total to the Bank is Rs.19.67 Crores. Thus, an extra amount of Rs.5.47 Crores has been paid by the Appellants. No wrongful loss, therefore, can be said to have been caused to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ements as has been entered into between the parties. The offences which are committed in relation with the Bank activities have a harmful effect on the public and threatens the well-being of the society leading to grave moral turpitude which constitutes these offences. The trust of the common citizen in the Bank and financial institutions and infrastructure of the country is shaken and, therefore, the accused has to face the charges. Reliance has been placed on the judgments of this Court in Central Bureau of Investigation v. Jagjit Singh (2013) 10 SCC 686 and State of Maharashtra v. Vikram Anantrai Doshi and Others (2014) 15 2 SCC 29, where this Court has set aside the orders passed in matters where the criminal charges were quashed on the basis of compromise. Similarly, reliance has been placed upon Parbatbhai Aahir @ Parbatbhai Bhimsinhbhai and Others v. The State of Gujarat and Others (2017) 9 SCC 641, where this Court held that economic offences have implications that lie beyond the domain of mere dispute between the private disputants which will have implications involving the financial and economic well being of the State. 13. Counsel has further asserted that a fraud has b ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ion which has been entered into between two parties. No official of the Bank has been found to be involved in wrongful issuance of Letters of Credit to the Appellants which is apparent from the fact that although initially the provisions under the PC Act were invoked but at the time of submission of the chargesheet, the name of the Bank Manager as well as the provisions of the PC Act are found to be not included. It is unequivocally mentioned in the chargesheet that no evidence has been found of the involvement of the Bank officials. The allegations against the Appellants are that of forgery. The basic requirements thereof, as provided under the statute are missing. Nothing has come forth which would lead to such a conclusion. 17. In any case, the aspect with regard to the amount which was advanced to the Appellants through the Letters of Credit have initially been paid from the year 1998 to the year 2005. It is thereafter that there has been default at the end of the Appellants. The proceedings before the DRT have been initiated by the Bank after declaring the account as NPA in the year 2008. It is during these proceedings that a One-Time Settlement proposal, as submitted by the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Offences Wing. CBI on its part found the offences punishable under Sections 120B read with Sections 419, 420, 467, 468 and 471 IPC as also offences under Section 13(1)(d) and Section 13(2) of the PC Act having been committed. 19.2 During the pendency of the proceedings before the DRT, chargesheet was filed. On the basis of the settlement entered into between the parties, DRT closed the proceedings against the respondents in that case and the Bank issued a "No Dues Certificate". It is thereafter that they had approached the High Court for quashing of the FIR on the basis of settlement of the dispute. The High Court proceeded to dismiss the petition preferred under Section 482 CrPC asserting that there were charges of fraudulent, fake and forged documents used to embezzle the public money and merely because a private settlement between the Bank and the accused has taken place, it could not be said that the prosecution of accused person would amount to an abuse of process of Court. 19.3 A Special Leave to Appeal was preferred and this Court, on considering the legal position as settled by this Court in various judgments and referring to the judgments in Duncans Agro Industries Limit ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ivil flavour having arisen out of civil, mercantile, commercial, financial, partnership or such like transactions or the offences arising out of matrimony, particularly relating to dowry, etc. or a family dispute, where the wrong is basically to the victim and the offender and the victim have settled all disputes between them amicably, the High Court would be justified in quashing the criminal proceedings, even if the offences have not been made compoundable. 35. In para 60 of Gian Singh [Gian Singh v. State of Punjab, (2012) 10 SCC 303 : (2012) 4 SCC (Civ) 1188 : (2013) 1 SCC (Cri) 160 : (2012) 2 SCC (L&S) 988], his Lordship considers the cases where the Court has refused to quash the proceedings irrespective of the settlement. The Court considers the different factual positions arising in B.S. Joshi [B.S. Joshi v. State of Haryana, (2003) 4 SCC 675 : 2003 SCC (Cri) 848], Nikhil Merchant [Nikhil Merchant v. CBI, (2008) 9 SCC 677 : (2008) 3 SCC (Cri) 858], and Manoj Sharma [Manoj Sharma v. State, (2008) 16 SCC 1 : (2010) 4 SCC (Cri) 145] on one hand and the CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 3862 OF 2024 Page 16 of 20 other cases where the Court refused to quash the proceedings. 36. In the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he village, including the Sarpanch, had intervened in the matter and the parties had not only buried their hatchet but had decided to live peacefully in the future, quashed and set aside the criminal proceedings under Section 307IPC. 43. The aforesaid view has consistently been followed by this Court in various cases including Gold Quest International [Gold Quest International (P) Ltd. v. State of T.N., (2014) 15 SCC 235 : (2015) 4 SCC (Cri) 631] and Sadhu Ram Singla [CBI v. Sadhu Ram Singla, (2017) 5 SCC 350 : (2017) 2 SCC (Cri) 535] ." 19.6 This Court accordingly proceeded to quash the proceedings against the accused-Appellants therein on coming to the conclusion that the dispute predominantly involved and had overtures of civil disputes. 20. Now, coming to the case in hand, we have already observed that the dispute involved is primarily of civil nature. The aggrieved party, if any, would have been the Bank which has no grievance against the Appellants. Further, no loss has been caused to the Bank as is apparent from the calculations presented by the appellants before this Court. Not only the principal amount has been returned but an amount over and above thereto, on the ba ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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