The rights of the minor child and the obligations of the parties must be adequately considered in mediation settlement agreements.

R.K. Gauba, J.

The second respondent was married to the first petitioner as per Hindu rites and ceremonies on 07.02.2011. From out of cohabitation of the said parties a male child Vaibhav took birth on 01.01.2012. On 19.10.2011, on the complaint of the second respondent, first information report (FIR) No.511/2011 was registered by Police Station Uttam Nagar involving offences punishable under sections 406/498-A/34 of Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC), the allegations having been made against the first petitioner (the husband), his father (the second petitioner), his mother (the third petitioner) his brothers (fourth and fifth petitioners) and another relative (the sixth petitioner). It is stated that on conclusion of the investigation a report (charge sheet) under Section 173 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (Cr.P.C.) was submitted by the police in the court of Metropolitan Magistrate on 12.02.2013, the same being now subject matter of the criminal case No.14/2 of 2013.

2. By the petition at hand, presented by invoking inherent power and jurisdiction of this court under Section 482 Cr.P.C. prayer is made for quashing of the proceedings in the said criminal case on the basis of a settlement that is stated to have been entered upon by the petitioner on one hand and the second respondent (the complainant) on the other before the mediation centre, Tis Hazari Courts, Delhi on 30.01.2014, upon reference to mediation having been made by the family court in the case for divorce (HMA case No.355/2013) then pending.

3. The petition is resisted by the second respondent by a reply styled as counter/objections submitted in August, 2016 to which a reply has been filed, it to be treated as rejoinder. Pursuant to certain earlier orders the parties have filed further affidavits referring to the dispute that has been raised by the complainant.

4. From the pleadings and the documents on record, particularly the copy of the mediation settlement dated 30.01.2014 on which the petitioners place prime reliance, it is noted that on account of matrimonial dispute the parties became involved in a number of cases, some civil and some criminal in nature. The complainant had lodged FIR No.511/2011 with Police Station Uttam Nagar to which present proceedings relate. Besides this, she had also filed petition under Section 125 Cr.P.C. and another petition under Section 12 of Protection of Woman from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 which were pending at the relevant point of time before the Metropolitan Magistrate. The first petitioner (the husband), on the other hand, had lodged two criminal cases, one bearing complaint No.3595/09/2011 alleging offences under Section 406 IPC pending at the relevant point of time in the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Muzaffar Nagar, U.P. in which the complainant herein, her father and brother and maternal uncle had been summoned as accused, the said summoning order being subject matter of challenge by criminal revision No.350/2013, pending before the court of sessions at Muzaffar Nagar, U.P. He had also lodged FIR No.70/2013 alleging offences punishable under Sections 494/406/420 IPC, registered at Police Station Shahpur within the jurisdiction of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Muzaffarpur, U.P., the said case registered as No.1326-A/09/2013 involving the complainant herein, her parents and maternal uncle as accused, the summoning order again being challenged before the court of sessions invoking its revisional jurisdiction.

5. On the basis of mediation process, the parties resolved to put on record on 03.01.2014 that there was no probability of reunion, they have decided to part ways, inter alia, by moving the family court for a decree of divorce, certain timeline having been fixed for two petitions to be filed and the payment of Rs.1,60,000/- followed by another payment of Rs.1,50,000/- to be made to the complainant by the first petitioner. It is stated that the said two petitions came to be filed