Criminal proceedings cannot be maintained without sufficient evidence, especially when initiated after significant delay post-arbitral award, indicating potential malafide intent.

JUDGMENT :

Shampa Dutt (Paul), J.

1. The present revision has been preferred praying for quashing of the proceeding arising out of case no. CS 27633 of 2023, pending before the learned Metropolitan Magistrate, 19th Court, Calcutta, under Sections 120B/409/418/420/465/467/468/471 of the Indian Penal Code.

2. The allegations in the written complaint against the petitioner company herein is as follows:-

“………..The accused no. 2 is a company within the meaning of the companies Act, 1956 having its registered office at the address as mentioned in the cause title.

The management of the complainant company appointed the accused no. 1 as Management Accountant of the complainant company w.e.f. 02.06.1997. Subsequently she was made the Accounts Executive and she used to handle the entire finance and accounts department of the complainant company. She was also a Bank Signatory of the complainant company.

In order to enable the accused no. 1 to perform her job smoothly and efficiently, the accused no. 1 was provided with company’s letter-heads, company’s seal, official files, official stationary, classified documents, party ledgers, company’s balance sheets, IT Files, bank statements, accounting softwares etc. She was also disclosed/divulged with various official communications, correspondences, customer information, various trade secrets, technical know-how, business data and confidential information which forms part of the exclusive property of the complainant company and which the said accused person is/was not likely to disclose to third party or use for her personal work and/or misuse the same as per her terms of employment.

As part of her duty, the accused no. 1 used to prepare and maintain the accounts of the complainant company, deduct TDS from the invoices, prepare TDS certificates as per the prevalent prescribed Rules of Income Tax Department, fulfill other statutory compliances for and on behalf of the complainant company independently.

In passage of time the complainant company gave huge business to the accused no. 2 and had been maintaining a current/running account with the accused no. 2. The complainant company had been regularly servicing the said current account until the year 2012 when the business of the complainant company suffered huge loss and the complainant company started going through financial constrains.

In such circumstances, the complainant company suddenly received a purported letter of demand dated October 31, 2012 from the accused no. 2 whereby a disputed sum of money was claimed by the accused no. 2 on account of purported supply of materials and it was also falsely claimed in the said letter that at the complainant company had deducted TDS amounting to Rs.48,65,306/- in favour of the accused no. 2 towards acknowledgment of such alleged debt.

The complainant company did not deduct an amount of Rs.48,65,306/- towards TDS in favour of the accused no. 2 far less issuing TDS certificate of such amount in favour of the accused no. 2.

It is further stated that after a gap of more than 8 years on or about July 18, 2022 the complainant company came to learn that the accused no. 2 had obtained an ex parte Arbitral Award dated March 04, 2014 against the complainant company. The Arbitral Award dated March 04, 2014 passed by Sri. Sali M. Shah along with certain accompaniments including three purported TDS Certificates, the details of which are furnished herein below:-

The complainant’s case is that TDS certificate is false and fake documents manufactured by the accused no. 1 (employee of the complainant) in collusion and connivance with the accused no. 1 as the as the accused no. 2 used the said forged and fake document as genuine.

The complainant has denied the signature of Abhishek Bose appearing in the signature being