Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation

2022 Supreme(SC) 127

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
(From the High Court f Judicature at Allahabad, Lucknow Bench)
AJAY RASTOGI, ABHAY S. OKA, JJ.
Shafiya Khan @ Shakuntala Prajapati - Appellant
Versus
State Of U.P. & Anr. – Respondents
Criminal Appeal No(S). 200 of 2022 (Arising out of SLP(Crl.) No(s).8283 of 2021)
Decided on : 10-02-2022

Advocates appeared:
For the Petitioner(s): Mr. Gaurav, AOR
For the Respondent(s): Mr. Adarsh Upadhyay, AOR Mr. Amit Singh, Adv. Mr. ajay Prajapati, Adv. Mr. Aman Pathak, Adv. Mr. Arvind Gupta, AOR

IMPORTANT POINT
Inherent powers do not confer any arbitrary jurisdiction on Court to act according to its whims and fancies.

Headnote:
Indian Penal Code, 1860 – Sections 494, 495, 416, 420, 504 and 506 – Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 482 – Bigamy, cheating, intentional insult and criminal intimidation – Power of quashing of criminal proceedings should be exercised very sparingly and with circumspection and that too in rarest of rare cases – It was not justified for Court in embarking upon an enquiry as to reliability or genuineness or otherwise of allegations made in FIR or complaint – Inherent powers do not confer any arbitrary jurisdiction on Court to act according to its whims and fancies – In instant case, there was no material placed on record by complainant to justify bald allegations which were made in complaint on the basis of which FIR was registered – Although it was not open for Court to embark upon any enquiry as to reliability or genuineness of allegations made in FIR, but at least there has to be some factual supporting material for what has been alleged in FIR which is completely missing in present case and documentary evidence on record clearly supports that her Nikah Nama was duly registered and issued by competent authority and even charge-sheet filed against her does not prima facie discloses how marriage certificate was forged – No offence of any kind as has been alleged in FIR, has been made out against appellant – If criminal proceedings are allowed to continue, it will be nothing but a clear abuse of process of law and will be a mental trauma to appellant which has been completely overlooked by High Court while dismissing petition filed at her instance under Section 482 Cr.P.C. – Criminal proceedings quashed and set aside. (Paras 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21)
Facts of the case:
Present appeal is directed against the order dated 8th September, 2021 passed by High Court of Judicature at Allahabad declining to interfere in the criminal proceedings initiated against appellant at the instance of respondent no.2/complainant (bother-in-law of appellant).
Findings of Court:
There are undisputed facts on record that the appellant’s marriage was solemnized with late Mohd. Shameem Khan on 11th December, 2016 and from this wedlock, a male child was born on 23rd September, 2017 and her husband untimely passed away on 8th December, 2017 and until their period of matrimonial relationship, no complaint of any kind was ever made by her late husband (Mohd. Shameem Khan) and after she was paid his terminal benefits and got a compassionate appointment in his place as an A.N.M. by an order dated 19th May, 2018 w.e.f. 28th April, 2018, all sort of issues were raised by complainant (brother of her deceased husband) of making such false allegations with reference to her marriage and also for terminal benefits which she received and there was not even prima facie foundation to support the nature of allegations which were made.
Result : Appeal allowed.

JUDGMENT :

Rastogi, J.

1. Leave granted.

2. This appeal is directed against the order dated 8th September, 2021 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad declining to interfere in the criminal proceedings initiated against the appellant at the instance of respondent no.2/complainant (bother-in-law of the appellant).

3. The case of the appellant is that she was born in a Hindu family and was married in May 2009 when she was a minor (17 years) to one Shiv Gobind Prajapati with whom she never stayed and the marriage was never consummated. In the divorce petition which was filed by Shiv Gobind Prajapati, it was admitted that the marriage was never consummated and this marriage was dissolved through Village Panchayat in 2014 between the families of the appellant and Shiv Gobind Prajapati, who thereafter married another woman, Suman Prajapati and this marriage being voidable under Section 5 of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 and Section 3 of Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 was dissolved and annulled by the families of the appellant and Shiv Gobind Prajapati.

4. The appellant treating her marriage to be annulled for all practical purposes, while doing her studies in Lucknow, met Mohd. Shameem Khan and they got married on 11th December, 2016 under Sharia law in presence of entire family of her late husband, including respondent no.2/complainant, against the wishes of her family. A certificate of marriage was issued by the competent authority and a translated copy of “Nikah Nama” (Marriage Certificate) was issued by the Languages Department, Darul Uloom Nadwatul Ulama, Lucknow dated 11th December, 2016.

5. From this marriage, the appellant gave birth to a male child on 23rd September, 2017 and was living happily with her late husband. Unfortunately, her husband passed away on 8th December, 2017. After the appellant obtained succession certificate in her name and no objection was given by her mother-in-law to the employer of Mohd. Shameem Khan, she got employment in King George Medical University, Lucknow, as Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (A.N.M.) on compassionate grounds by an order dated 19th May, 2018 w.e.f. 28th April, 2018 and being the legally wedded wife of the deceased (late Mohd. Shameed Khan), his terminal dues were paid to her. The fact is that the entire gratuity amount of Rs.4,60,000/of her late husband was transferred by her to the bank account of her mother- in-law. However, the destiny was not humble to her and she was thrown out of her matrimonial home by respondent no.2 with an eleven months old child on 19th August, 2018 and thereafter respondent no.2 made all kinds of malafide, false and frivolous allegations against the appellant, including to the employer of the appellant to remove her from employment.

6. After more than a year, at the instance of respondent no.2, a written complaint/FIR came to be registered against the appellant for offences under Sections 494, 495, 416, 420, 504 & 506 IPC at PS Bazar Khala, District Lucknow, U.P. on 9th July, 2019. Anticipatory bail was granted to the appellant and after chargesheet came to be filed on 23rd March, 2021 under Sections 494, 420, 504, 506, 467, 468 and 471 IPC, the learned trial Judge took cognizance of the same and summoned the appellant.

7. At this stage, the appellant approached the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad under Section 482 Cr.P.C. for quashing of the proceedings, but that came to be dismissed by the High Court under impugned order dated 8th September, 2021, which is the subject matter of challenge in the appeal before us.

8. Counsel for the appellant submits that everything was running smoothly in her life, but because of the untimely sad demise of her husband late Mohd. Shameem Khan, her brother-in-law left no stone unturned to pressurize her for handing over all the terminal benefits which she received on account of death of her late husband and was interested to seek compassionate appointment in her place. This was the primary reason for which

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