The court emphasized that prosecution for cheating requires clear evidence of dishonest intention from the outset, and vague allegations without such intent constitute an abuse of process.

ORDER :

V.SUJATHA, J.

This criminal petition is filed under Section 482 of Criminal Procedure Code (for short “Cr.P.C.”) to quash the crime No.612 of 2020 on the file of SHO, III Town Police Station, Visakhapatnam, registered for the offence punishable under Sections 420, 465, 468, 471 read with 34 of Indian Penal Code (for short “I.P.C.”).

2) Petitioners herein are accused Nos.1 and 2. Respondent No.2 is the complainant. Respondent No.2 herein filed a complaint before the police alleging that she is the partner of NK Engineering Works established by her husband in the year 2014. Later, in the year 2016, petitioner No.1 herein joined as partner in her firm and they executed a partnership deed on 18.05.2016 and on the same day her husband and one Aryaman Midha (petitioner No.2 herein), who is the son of petitioner No.1, joined as Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) respectively. On 26.06.2019 at about 4.00 p.m. petitioner Nos.1 and 2 came to the house of respondent No.2 and insisted her to sign on a newly created deed of retirement, on perusing the same, she refused to sign on those papers, for which both the petitioners abused her in filthy language and threatened to kill her family. When defacto complainant requested them to pay due salary of Rs.8,00,000/- to her husband and to settle the accounts, both the petitioners left the house and bore grudge against defacto complainant, and avoided her in day to day to activities of the firm. Further, the petitioners ill treated her husband. Having waited for some time, defacto complainant – respondent No.2 addressed a letter to the firm to settle her account and pay the dues, the petitioners committed forgery of her signatures and continued the transactions in the banks. Defacto complainant further alleged that the petitioners created a new deed in their favour as if defacto complainant voluntarily retired from the firm by forging her signatures on the said deed and Form V and submitted the same to the District Registrar, Visakhapatnam and when she searched in the website, she has not found her name as a partner, on noticing the same, she intimated the same to her Banker and requested to stop all the transactions on behalf of NK Engineering as they are taking place without her consent. When the banker restricted the petitioners herein, they have opened another account in the name of NK Engineering work at ICICI Bank, Gandhinagar Branch with the support of new forged documents and continued the business affairs without her consent. Further, she tried to negotiate with the petitioners for an amicable settlement, but they have not come forward to settle the issue till date and that they are running the business with forged documents. Therefore, she lodged the said complaint with the police against the petitioners. The present petition has been filed to quash the Crime No.612 of 2020.

3) On 04.09.2020, when the present petition came up for hearing, this Court passed the following interim order.

“……….. In the meanwhile, there shall be stay of all further proceedings.”

4) Thereafter, the said interim order has been extended from time to time.

5) Learned counsel for the petitioners contended that the allegations made in the complaint prima facie do not make out a case against the petitioners and all the allegations made against the petitioners are false, vague and baseless. The allegations made in the complaint do not show any intention of the petitioners at the inception to constitute the offence under Section 420 of I.P.C. Mere allegation that the reconstituted deed has been forged to cheat the complainant does not amount to cheating. According to the complaint, on 29.06.2019, the petitioners visited the house of respondent No.2 and insisted her to sign on a newly created deed of retirement, but she a lodged complaint in the month of July, 2020 after an amount of Rs.60,00,000/- was credited to the account maintained by the firm in the months of April and June 2020, th