The Aurangabad Bench of the Bombay High Court has quashed criminal proceedings against Prajakta Mahendra Agrawal and her father-in-law Girdharilal Agrawal (“Applicant”), observing that what was essentially a civil dispute had been given the colour of a criminal offence.
The case arose from an FIR registered at Sadar Bazar Police Station, Jalna, alleging that the Jawahar Dembda (“complainant”) had invested ₹50 lakhs in 2019 in a real estate venture with Applicants. According to the complainant, the family induced him to invest on the promise of purchasing land and selling demarcated plots for profit. When the transaction failed, he sought return of his money, but the amount was not repaid. Mahendra, son of Girdharilal, died of Covid-19 in July 2020, after which the complainant alleged that Applicants refused to honour the commitment.
The applicants sought quashing of the FIR for the offences under Sections 420, 406 and 34 IPC[1], contending that the agreement was signed only by Mahendra, not by them, and that the complainant had already filed a civil suit for recovery. They argued that there was no dishonest intention to either cheat or misappropriate. Later, the application was amended to include quashing of chargesheet which was filed before Judicial Magistrate First Class, Jalna, during pendency of this application.
The Division Bench of Justices Sandipkumar C. More and Mehroz K. Pathan accepted the contention, holding that the essential ingredients of cheating and criminal breach of trust were absent. The Court noted that Mahendra had even issued a cheque of ₹50 lakhs as security, which the complainant never presented, negating allegations of fraudulent intent. The Bench relied on precedents including State of Haryana v. Bhajan Lal[2], Delhi Race Club Ltd. v. State of U.P.[3], and Indian Oil Corporation v. NEPC India Ltd.[4], reiterating that civil disputes should not be converted into criminal prosecutions.
Finding that continuation of proceedings would amount to abuse of process, the Court quashed the FIR, the charge-sheet, and the related case pending before the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Jalna.
Appearances
Applicants- Mr. Vishal A. Bagdiya
Respondents- APP Mr. S. R. Wakale for State Advocate for the Respondent No.2- Mr. Aditya N. Sikchi
[1] Replaced by Sections 318(4), 316(2) and 3(5) of Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023
[2] AIR 1992 SC 604
[3] (2024) 10 SCC 690
[4] 2006 (6) SCC 736
