IMPORTANT POINT
The court ruled that proceedings under Section 497 IPC cannot continue as it was declared unconstitutional, leading to the quashing of the High Court's order.

ORDER

1. Leave granted.

2. This appeal by special leave is directed against the order dated 26.05.2023 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad in Application under Section 482 No.16490 of 2019. The appellant filed the said application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short ‘the Cr.P.C.’) seeking quashment of the entire proceedings, summoning order and also the non-bail warrant issued against him in connection with Complaint Case No.1493 of 2017, wherein he was arraigned as accused No.5.

3. Learned counsel for the appellant would submit that in the light of the exposition of law by this Court in Joseph Shine versus Union of India reported in (2019 (3) SCC 39), there is absolutely no question of convicting the appellant for the offence under Section 497 of the Indian Penal Code (for short ‘the IPC’), as the said provision was declared as unconstitutional by this Court. The position that the said section was declared as unconstitutional is indisputable. When this being the indisputable position, the question is whether the proceedings in Complaint Case No.1493/2017 against the appellant be permitted to continue.

4. In the decision of this Court in State of Haryana and Ors. vs. Bhajan Lal and Ors. reported in (1992 Supp (1) SCC 335), this Court held where the allegations made in the First Information Report or in the complaint, even if they are taken at their face value and accepted in their entirety do not prima facie constitute any offence or make out a case against the accused, it is a case wherein the inherent power under Section 482 of the Cr.P.C. should be exercised. There is no dispute with respect to the position that the accusation against the appellant/accused No.5 in Complaint Case No.1493/2017 is only commission of offence under Section 497, IPC.

5. Having heard learned counsel on both sides and in view of the fact that the appellant is charged only for the offence under Section 497 IPC and in the light of the decision of this Court in Joseph Shine’s case (supra), we have no hesitation to hold that it is absolutely unnecessary to permit continuance of the proceedings in Complaint Case No.1493 of 2017 qua the appellant. In that view of the matter, the impugned order dated 26.05.2023 passed by the High Court invites interference.

6. Consequently, for the reasons given above, this appeal is allowed. The order dated 26.05.2023 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad in Application under Section 482 No.16490 of 2019 stands quashed and set aside.

7. The entire proceedings initiated against the appellant in Complaint Case No.1493 of 2017 pending on the file of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Budaun in Uttar Pradesh, the summoning order dated 29.01.2018 as well as the non-bailable warrant dated 05.10.2018 issued against the appellant stand quashed and set aside.