The main legal point established in the judgment is that the power to quash an FIR should be exercised sparingly, and all material on record, including the FSL report, should be considered. The court emphasized the principles governing the quashing of FIR under Section 482 of the Cr.P.C.

JUDGMENT

Swarana Kanta Sharma, J.

1. The instant petition under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (`Cr.P.C.') has been filed on behalf of petitioner seeking quashing of FIR bearing No. 141/2014, registered at Police Station Hazrat Nizamuddin, Delhi for the offences punishable under Section 420 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (`IPC') and all consequent proceedings emanating therefrom including three charge-sheets dated 06.06.2015, 23.02.2016 and 03.09.2016.

2. Brief facts of the present case are that the complainant, Mr. Rajiv Bhatnagar had alleged that his late father, J.P Bhatnagar, was the rightful proprietor of "Mastana Jogi" magazine, but his younger brother, Sh. Ish Bhatnagar (the accused/petitioner), had falsely claimed proprietorship and started operating the magazine with forged documents. It was further alleged that this act was unlawful as his father had died without leaving a will, and thus, the complainant, being the legal heir, had an equal right to the proprietorship. The complainant presented evidence of his father's illness and treatment, asserting that he was incapable of signing or executing any documents at the time. Subsequently, the present FIR was registered, and during the investigation, witnesses were examined, relevant documents were seized, and the accused was interrogated. Charge sheets were filed against the accused under Sections 420/468/471 IPC, with the Forensic Science Laboratory ("FSL") result and further investigation details were submitted separately.

3. Learned senior counsel for the petitioner states that the FSL report is inconclusive, and lacks the backing of authentic documents. It is further stated that the FSL report is premised upon xerox copies, and not the original documents. It is stated that the FSL report in this case does not support the prosecution story. It is, therefore, stated that the petitioner should not undergo trial in absence of any incrimination evidence against him. Further, while drawing attention of this court towards `Annexure-G', learned senior counsel states that the petitioner had lodged a complaint against the respondent no. 2 prior to him filing the present FIR.

4. Learned APP for the state, on the other hand, states that there are other materials on record, including statements of the witnesses, apart from the FSL report, which prove that accused is prima facie guilty of the offence mentioned in the chargesheet.

5. Learned counsel for respondent no.2, in relation to complaint filed by petitioner, i.e. `Annexure-G', states that the said complaint had culminated into a closure report, against which the protest petition filed by the petitioner had also been dismissed and against the said order of dismissal, a revision petition is pending before the concerned court.

6. I have heard arguments on behalf of both the parties and have perused the material on record.

7. After hearing arguments and considering material on record, this court is of view that in the present case, the petitioners have been alleged to have engaged in deceptive practices wherein they had assumed the roles of Proprietor and Managing Editor of "Mastana Jogi" magazine following the demise of the complainant's father. These allegations suggest that the petitioners had falsely declared themselves as the sole proprietors, editors, printers, and publishers, disregarding the rightful claim of the complainant as the legal heir. Furthermore, the petitioners have been accused of making false representations and forging documents. During the course of the investigation, the complainant and other witnesses were examined, and the accused was interrogated. Some relevant original documents and photocopies of documents were seized. As per prosecution, the letters placed on record, which are purported to be in the name of Sh. J.P. Bhatnagar, are not authentic. It is further claimed, relying on evidence, that the father of the complainant was suffering from such illness, that he was i