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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
Ranjit V More, Bharati H Dangre, JJ.
Poonam Agarwal – Appellant
Vs.
State of Maharashtra and Another – Respondents
Criminal Application No. 731 of 2017, 214 of 2019, 736 of 2017, 213 of 2019
Decided On : 18-04-2019
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 – Section 482 – Officials Secrets Act, 1923 – Section 3 and 7 – Indian Penal Code, 1860 – Sections 306, 451, 500 read with Section 34 – Exposing Corruption Racket – Quashment of Order – Both the aforesaid applications seek a concordant relief of quashing and setting aside of C.R. registered by Deolali Camp Police Station, Nashik thereby arraying the applicants in both these Applications as accused. – By the said C.R, offences under Sections 306, 451, 500 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 3 and 7 of the Officials Secrets Act, 1923, have been invoked and applied against the applicants. – Held, Court have taken note of the fact that both the applicants have been wrongly implicated in the said FIR by the complainant and by no stretch of imagination, the applicants can be said to be responsible for the suicide of Roy Mathew nor it can be said that it is the applicants who have abeted the commission of suicide by the deceased. – The microscopic examination of the complaint and the material placed before us would only disclose a sheer absurdity in the allegation and court do not find even a prima facie cognizable case being made out on its entire reading and therefore, Court is of the considered view that this is a fit case where the power conferred under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure deserves to be exercised. – Court is conscious of the fact that the power under Section 482 of the Code is to be exercised sparingly and by applying the parameters laid down by the Honble Apex Court in case of State of Haryana Vs. Bhajan Lal, (1992) Supp1 SCC 335, court is of the clear view that the allegations made in the complaint, even if they are taken at their face value and accepted in their entirety, it do not prima facie constitute any offence against the applicants. – In such circumstances, the continuation of the proceedings against the applicants would be unnecessary and would be amounting to abuse of the process of this Court. – Considering the prima facie nature of the case, this Court by its order has stayed the investigation in C.R. and at this stage, we are affirming the prima facie observations made by us while granting the interim order and specifically when court had an opportunity of viewing the material on the basis of which the complaint is filed which is the very basis of the registration of FIR. – The case initiated against the applicants is without any factual foundation and any further investigation would only result in sheer harassment to the applicants without any fruitful result. – Court is inclined to allow both the applications. – Court quash and set aside the C.R. registered by Sr. Inspector of Police, against the applicant – Order Accordingly
Bharati Dangre, J.
Both the aforesaid applications seek a concordant relief of quashing and setting aside of C.R.No.19 of 2017 registered by Deolali Camp Police Station, Nashik on 27th March 2017, thereby arraying the applicants in both these Applications as accused. By the said C.R, offences under Sections 306, 451, 500 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 3 and 7 of the Officials Secrets Act, 1923, have been invoked and applied against the applicants.
Since the relief sought in both the applications is more of less of the same nature, both the applications are heard together.
2. Criminal Application No.731 of 2017 is filed by the applicant who is a Journalist by profession and has worked in the said capacity for various newspapers and news channels. At the time of registration of FIR, the said applicant was working as an Associate Editor of Web News Portal, 'The Quint'. The applicant claims that she has been credited with various breaking news and has an outstanding career in investigative journalism and has received many accolades and awards for her work in the said field. She has specifically asserted in her application that she has exposed several corruption rackets, fake encounters and was the one responsible for exposing the nexus between the politician and corporate house.
The applicant Deepchand Kashmir Singh, an applicant in Criminal Application No.736 of 2017 is a retired Soldier and a War veteran having participated in operation 'Vijay', 'Rakshak' and 'Parakram'. He served the Indian Army from the year 1994 to 2005, when he lost both his legs and one hand in enemy fire. At the relevant time when the subject offence was registered against him, he was running a canteen business in Deolali campus till the alleged incident took place and after that, he was evicted from his canteen premises and it is his allegation that it was done as a vindictive action.
3. The subject offence came to be registered against both the applicants in respect of an incident which was reported by Lance Naik No.1517398OW Naresh Kumar Jadhav, resident of Deolali Camp. In his complaint dated 27th March 2017, he alleged that he is working in the capacity as Lance Naik and posted at Deolali camp. In the complaint, he states that he was working on Adam duty with Col. Anup Gajanan Barbare. The complaint further proceeds to state that similarly situated to him, are many other jawans who do Adam duty for various offices and this includes one Roy Mathew. It is stated that on 7th February 2017, while he was having his evening walk in the garden situated at Haig Line at Mahendra Enclave, he spotted retired Army Jawan Deepchand (applicant in Application No.736/2017 who had lost both his legs and one hand, sitting on a bench with an unknown lady who was holding a small purse in her hand and talking with someone on the phone. Upon seeing these two, the complainant walked towards Deepchand and inquired as to who the lady was and he received the reply from Deepchand that the lady (Applicant in Application No.731/17) was his relative. At the relevant time, he reported that there were other jawans who were trolling in the park and they also gathered and then the woman started inquiring with the complainant and other jawans as to what kind of work is entrusted to them. She posed questions about the nature of their work and they replied that there was no trouble working with their Officers and they were posted on Adam's Duty. At that time, the Army Driver Roy Mathew was also there. The complaint further proceeds to state that on 24th February 2017, there was a video which was uploaded on YouTube and he had an occasion to view the same and this was in relation to an incident which took place on 7th February 2017, but in the video, the faces of the Jawans including his own face was blurred. The video was in Deepchand's voice and it was the same lady who was in the video whom he had met on 7th February 2017. The complainant came to know tha
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