Important Point – Offence under Section 498A of IPC is a continuing offence.

J.B. PARDIWALA, J.

1. Since the issues involved in both the captioned petitions are more or less the same, those were heard analogously and are being disposed of by this common judgment and order.

CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS APPLICATION NO.14361 OF 2010:

2. By this application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, the applicant – original accused seeks to invoke the inherent powers of this Court, praying for quashing of the proceedings of the Criminal Case No.7307 of 2004 pending in the Court of the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Bhavnagar, arising from the First Information Report lodged by the respondent No.2 herein registered with the Bhavnagar Mahila Police Station as C.R. No.I-13 of 2004 for the offence punishable under Sections 498A, 323, 504, 506(2), 494, 406, 420 read with Section 114 of the Indian Penal Code, and also under Sections 3 and 7 of the Dowry Prohibition Act.

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

3.1 The respondent No.2 herein – original first informant, a native of Bhavnagar, got married to the applicant herein, a resident of Raipur, Chhattisgarh on 03.12.1997. In the wedlock, a daughter named ‘Alaiya’ was born on 25.08.2001. The first informant, after marriage, started residing in a joint family at her matrimonial home, which included her brother-in-law, mother-in-law, father-in-law and sister-in-law respectively. It is her case that for a period of about one year from the date of marriage, her matrimonial life was happy. However, thereafter, the husband and her in-laws started harassing her physically and mentally. It is alleged that the husband and her in-laws started demanding for dowry. It is alleged that while she had conceived, she was mercilessly beaten up by the husband and his family members. As a result, she suffered a miscarriage. She has also alleged that once there was an attempt on the part of the husband and his family members to kill her by pouring kerosene and setting her on fire. According to the first informant, she kept on suffering at the hands of the husband and his family members without any complaints about the same to her parents who were residing at Bhavnagar. It is her case that one day, the applicant herein called up the brother of the first informant, namely, Mohammad Raza and asked him to come to Raipur and take his sister i.e. the first informant along with him back to Bhavnagar. It is the case of the first informant that she returned to her parental home at Bhavnagar along with her brother in June 2001. After two months, the first informant gave birth to a baby girl named ‘Alaiya’. It is alleged that thereafter, neither the husband nor any of the family members of the husband made any inquiry about her and none came to Bhavnagar to take her back to her matrimonial home at Raipur, Chhattisgarh. It is her case that while she was at her parental home at Bhavnagar, she learnt that her husband i.e. the applicant herein, without seeking her consent, got married for the second time with a lady named ‘Nargish Banu’ at Mumbai. It is her case that although the first marriage was in subsistence, the applicant got married for the second time and a child was also born in the second wedlock. Accordingly, on 23.04.2004, the First Information Report was lodged by the first informant at the Mahila Police Station, Bhavnagar. It is the case of the first informant that her husband i.e. the applicant herein has committed the offence of bigamy punishable under Section 494 of the Indian Penal Code, Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code for treating her with cruelty, Section 323 of the Indian Penal Code for causing hurt, Sections 406 and 420 of the Indian Penal Code for retaining the ‘Stridhan’, Sections 504 and 506(2) of the Indian Penal Code for threatening her with life, and Sections 3 and 7 of the Dowry Prohibition Act for demanding dowry.

4. Having regard to the complex issue of the Personal Law of Muslim raised in this application, a Coordin