JUDGMENT

Altamas Kabir,J. —

1. Leave granted.

2. The appellant, who had all along been appearing in person, was represented by counsel, Mr. Vijay K. Aggarwal, at the time of final hearing of the appeal, which is directed against the judgment and order dated 27.8.2008 passed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Crl.M. No.13709 of 2007, dismissing the appellant’s application under Section 482 Cr.P.C. for quashing the FIR No.9 dated 10.1.2007 of P.S. Patiala, filed by his wife, the respondent No.2 herein.

3. The appellant’s marriage was solemnized with the respondent No.2 on 27.11.2004 as per Sikh rites. After their marriage, the couple went to Gujarat where the appellant was employed with Patronet L.N.G. Limited in District Bharuch, Gujarat, and lived together as husband and wife, though no child was born out of the said wedlock. Subsequently, differences arose between the appellant and the respondent No.2 which resulted in a complaint being made by the respondent No.2 on 12.5.2006 to the Senior Superintendent of Police, Patiala, requesting that a criminal case be registered against the appellant under Sections 406 and 498-A IPC.

The said complaint was forwarded to the Women’s Cell in Patiala, which made a detailed inquiry into the allegations made by the respondent No.2 against the appellant. After such inquiry, the Women’s Cell came to the conclusion that even in spite of the periodical differences between the appellant and the respondent No.2, they continued to maintain their relationship as husband and wife. From the report it appears that even after she left Gujarat, at the instance of her husband she returned to Gujarat in January 2006, and, thereafter, they visited Mount Abu, Bombay, Shirdi, Udaipur, Jaipur, Delhi and Gandhinagar, and both of them even went to Ambala to attend the retirement function of her mother-in-law, but after reaching Ambala she left for Patiala instead of going with the appellant to the Zirakpur. The Women’s Cell also found that the respondent No.2 had great love for her parents and as a result she wanted to stay with them more often. Even on the question of dowry, it was found that the entire complaint had been exaggerated and that the respondent No.2 was determined to teach her husband and his family members a lesson by levelling serious allegations against them. The ultimate conclusion arrived at by the Women’s Cell was that nothing had come out from the inquiry to prove the demand of dowry and issuance of threat, and that the dispute was of a civil nature which did not call for any action by the local police at the said stage.

4. Subsequently, a further inquiry was held by the Superintendent of Police, Patiala, who despite taking into consideration the report filed by the Women’s Cell Patiala, came to the conclusion that the respondent No.2 had been harassed by the appellant and her father-in-law and mother-in-law for not meeting the demand of dowry and suggested action to be taken under Sections 406, 498-A IPC and Sections 3 and 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. However, on receipt of the said report, the Senior Superintendent of Police, Patiala, met the appellant and the respondent No.2 and was of the view that the matter did not appear to be a case of demand of dowry and the allegations needed to be checked again for evidence, though the ingredients of Section 498-A could be true. The Superintendent of Police, Patiala, was directed to re-verify and substantiate the evidence.

5. After further inquiry, the Superintendent of Police, once again came to the conclusion that the appellant had harassed the respondent No.2 which merited the registration of a case against the appellant under Section 498-A IPC. Upon the case being registered, the appellant filed Criminal Misc. No.13709 of 2007 under Section 482 Cr.P.C. for quashing the FIR. The matter was heard by the learned Single Judge, who, by his order dated 27.8.2008, dismissed the application filed by the appellant for quashing of the F