1. By this writ application under Article-226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioners original accused and serving with the Pashchim Gujarat Vij Company Ltd., Adipur, Kutch as Engineers pray for quashing of the Criminal Complaint No.545 of 2013 filed by the respondent no.2 herein –original complainant in the Court of the learned JMFC, Anjar – Kutchh of the offence punishable under Sec. 304-A, 337, 338 r/w sec. 114 of IPC.

2. It appears from the materials on record that the learned Magistrate vide order dated 6th October, 2012 took cognizance upon the complaint and ordered police inquiry under sec. 202 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (for short “the Code”). On receipt of the report of the Police Officer and considering the other materials on record, the learned Magistrate thought fit to issue process against the applicants herein under sec. 204 of the Code for the offence under Sections 337, 338 and 304-A IPC vide order dated 26/8/2013.

3. The case of the complainant may be summarized as under:-

3.1 The complainant is a resident of Anjar-kutchh. He has a house at Plot No.11, Yamuna Park Society-II, outside Ganga naka, Anjar. He is a retired Police Officer. It is his case that just adjacent to his house a 11 KV high tension line is passing through. Between the compound wall of the house of the complainant and the high tension line, there are five huge trees. The youngest son of the complainant, namely, Bhavin aged 14, went on the staircase of his house on 26th November, 2011 at around 5 O’clock in the evening for flying kite. It is his case that the cables of the high tension line were cutting through the trees. On the date of the incident few branches of the tree had got entangled with the high tension line and the branches were touching with the iron grill of the house of the complainant. Since the trees were watered, the leaves were quite wet. The son of the complainant was flying kite and all of a sudden the string of the kite got entangled in one of the trees and while attempting to retrieve the string from the trees the son of the complainant sustained electric shock and got electrocuted. The son of the complainant was immediately shifted to the Anjar Civil Hospital where he was declared dead.

3.2 It is the case of the complainant that on account of sheer negligence on the part of the applicants herein who are employees of the electricity company his son lost his life. It is alleged in the complaint that first it is not permissible for the electricity company to lay any high tension line passing through a residential area. Secondly, it is his case that the applicants were negligent in not cutting the branches of the trees through which the electric line was passing through. Thirdly, it is his case that there was no proper earthing provided. In such circumstances referred to above, it is the case of the complainant that the applicants have committed an offence which could be termed as a rash and negligent act punishable under sec. 304-A of IPC.

4. Mr. Deepak R. Dave, the learned advocate appearing on behalf of the applicants, vehemently submitted that the learned Magistrate committed a serious error in taking cognizance of the complaint lodged by the complainant and ordering issue of process for the offence noted above. According to Mr. Dave no penal liability could be fastened on the applicants herein who are serving as Engineers with the company. Mr. Dave submits that the 11 KV high-tension line was laid much before the three applicants were posted at Anjar-kutchh. According to Mr. Dave, if 11 KV high-tension line was laid years back, then the complainant cannot allege that such line could not have been laid in a residential area and at least the applicants herein should not be held responsible for the same.

4.1 According to Mr.Dave none of the ingredients to constitute the offence under Sec. 304-A IPC are spelt-out in the facts of the present case. The continuation of criminal proceedings agains