IMPORTANT POINT
Where sufficient averments are made in complaint regarding vicarious liability, Courts should not exercise power u/s 482, Cr.P.C.

JUDGMENT

Deepak Verma, J. —

1. Leave granted.

2. This and the connected matters arise out of the order dated 27.07.2007 in exercise of the jurisdiction conferred under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure [for short, ‘Cr.P.C.’], passed by learned Single Judge of the High Court of Judicature of Andhra Pradesh at Hyderabad in Criminal Petitions No. 3085 of 2007, 3082 of 2007 and 3084 of 2007 all titled Poduru Vidya Bhushan and Others Vs. Rallis India Ltd. and Another, whereby and whereunder Accused No. 4, 6 and 7 (arraigned as Respondents Nos. 1, 2 and 3 herein) have been discharged of the offences contained under Sections 138 and 141 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 (hereinafter shall be referred to as ‘Act’).

3. For the sake of convenience, facts mentioned in SLP (Crl.) No. 1874 of 2008 are taken into consideration.

4. Appellant as Complainant filed a criminal complaint before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Gautam Budh Nagar, Noida (U.P.) on 23.7.2004, under Sections 138 and 141 of the Act. It was alleged in the said complaint that cheques bearing nos.382874 and 382875 dated 31.03.2004 for Rs.15,00,000/- each drawn on Union Bank of India, Vijaywada Main Branch were issued by the accused persons. The said cheques, when presented to their banker, were returned as unpaid vide Cheques Return Advices dated 29.05.2004, with the remarks, ‘Payment stopped by Drawer’. In the said complaint, the following specific plea is raised by the Appellant:

“That the Accused No. 1 is a partnership firm and Accused No. 2 to 7 are partners thereof and Accused No. 3 is signatory of the impugned cheques and all partners are looking after day to day affairs of the accused firm and thus the liability as raised by them is joint and several.”

5. It may be pertinent to mention here that the Appellant herein had filed substantially similar complaints before the Criminal Courts of competent Jurisdiction at Chandigarh, Vijayawada and Jammu & Kashmir as well. The partnership firm M/s Sri Lakshmi Agency was therefore, constrained to file T.P. (Crl.) Nos. 161-171 of 2005, which came to be disposed of by this Court on 03.03.2006 and all criminal cases (excluding those pending in the State of Jammu & Kashmir) filed by Appellant against Respondents were directed to be tried by Competent Criminal Court at Hyderabad as a series of composite criminal complaints. Consequently all the complaints are now pending before XIV Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Nampally, Hyderabad, for disposal in accordance with law. The Respondents herein arrayed as Accused Nos. 4, 6 and 7 in the said complaints thereafter filed applications in the High Court of Judicature of Andhra Pradesh at Hyderabad under Section 482 of the Cr.P.C. for their discharge.

6. It was, inter alia, contended by the Respondents before the High Court as under:

“That the aforesaid complaint depicted the applicants as the partners of M/s Sri Lakshmi Agencies. That the aforesaid averments is a false one. Particularly when the complainant M/s Rallis India Ltd. was fully aware that the applicants had severed their connections with M/s Lakshmi agencies much prior to the execution of the Memorandum of Understanding dated 31.03.2004 and also the issuance of the dishonoured cheques on 31.03.2004.”

The learned Single Judge of the High Court after perusal of the record and hearing the parties found it fit and proper to discharge the Respondents. Hence this Appeal.

7. We have, accordingly, heard learned counsel, Mr. Ajay Dahiya for Appellant and Mr. G.V.R. Choudary, for Respondents at length and perused the record.

8. At the outset, learned counsel appearing for Appellant contended that in the light of the aforesaid averments having been made categorically in the original complaints, no case was made out for discharge of the Respondents. It was also contended that Respondents have denied their vicarious liability for the offences under Section 138/141 of the Act, on the ground that they had retired fr