Point of Law : Court has to exercise its jurisdiction under Section 482 of Cr.P.C. to take off Damocles sword hanging on head of petitioners and annihilate very crime registered against them, failing which, it would be putting a premium on litigative tactics of complainant and would degenerate into harassment against petitioners, becoming an abuse of process of law and eventually resulting in miscarriage of justice. [Para 20]

ORDER :

1. The petitioners/accused 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8 and 9 are before this Court calling in question registration of a crime in Crime No. 35 of 2020 for offences punishable under Sections 406, 420, 120B and 34 of the IPC.

2. Brief facts that lead the petitioners to this Court in the subject petition, as borne out from the pleadings, are as follows:

The 2nd respondent is the complainant and proprietor of SRS Travels. The 1st petitioner is Scania Commercial Vehicles India Private Limited (‘Company’ for short) and other petitioners are either Managing Director, Director or office bearers of the 1st petitioner/Company. The 2nd respondent is a transport operator operating fleet of buses. The 1st petitioner deals with sales of buses. In the year 2013 the 1st petitioner and the complainant entered into certain transaction with regard to sale and purchase of buses. The purchase of buses was financed by Volkswagen Finance Private Limited (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Financier’ for short). The complainant purchased buses from the 1st petitioner throughout the period between 2013 and 2018. The complainant appears to have defaulted in payment of installments to the Financier. This led the Financier to initiate proceedings before the Arbitrator and then seeks possession of vehicles before the competent Court at Delhi. These orders come about on 02-11-2019.

3. After the Financier seized all the vehicles which were financed, a complaint comes to be registered before the jurisdictional Police by the complainant on 05-04-2020 alleging that due to acts of the 1st petitioner/Company in supplying vehicles that were defective, the complainant has suffered losses, due to which, the complainant was unable to clear dues to the Financier and, therefore, the petitioners were all guilty of criminal breach of trust and cheating. The complaint results in registration of a crime in Crime No. 35 of 2020. On registration of the crime, the petitioners knocked the doors of this Court in the subject petition.

4. This Court, having entertained the petition, grants an interim order of stay and admits the matter to be heard finally. During the pendency of the petition, the original complainant dies. The daughter of the complainant seeks to come on record, which was objected to by the petitioners contending that the cause has died as it was a case where even before the Police could file a charge sheet, the complainant had died. This Court by its order dated 03-09-2022 declined to accept such submission and permitted the daughter of the complainant to come on record and step into the shoes of the original complainant. It is then the daughter of the complainant is representing the original complainant as his legal representative.

5. Heard Sri C.V. Nagesh, learned senior counsel appearing for the petitioners, Smt. K.P. Yashodha, learned High Court Government Pleader appearing for respondent No. 1 and Sri Sandesh J. Chouta, learned senior counsel appearing for respondent No. 2.

6. The learned senior counsel representing the petitioners would vehemently contend that a purely commercial transaction between the original complainant and the 1st petitioner/Company is sought to be given a colour of crime. The reason for registering the crime is that the original complainant became a chronic defaulter for not paying any amount to the Financier and buses that were sent for repair had to be kept in the workshop as the complainant failed to pay event charges for repairs; After becoming such chronic defaulter, becoming disgruntled he seeks to register a crime on 05-04-2020 alleging that the 1st petitioner had delivered buses which were defective and could not be used, notwithstanding the fact that every bus delivered, after using them for close to one lakh to two lakh kms. the complainant has come up with the allegation that they were defective; it was a case of pure wear and tea