IMPORTANT POINT
The main legal point established in the judgment is that a statement, though couched in the form of a threat, must meet the specific ingredients to attract the offence of criminal intimidation under Section 506 of IPC.

ORDER :

This Criminal Miscellaneous Case has been filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, to quash Annexure A2 Final Report and all further proceedings in C.P.No.12/2022 on the files of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-VIII, Ernakulam, arose out of Crime No.1191/2019 of Panangad Police Station, Ernakulam, against the petitioner, who is the 2nd accused therein.

2. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Public Prosecutor. Perused the relevant documents.

3. In this matter, offences punishable under Sections 366, 354(D)(1), 354 and 506 read with Section 34 of IPC are alleged to have been committed by accused Nos.1 and 2.

4. The learned counsel for the petitioner read out the First Information Statement given by the defacto complainant referring the name of the second accused and argued that when reading the above statement alone, the same would suggest an occurrence prior to the occurrence, which led to registration of this crime. Therefore, the final report as against the petitioner is without sufficient materials. It is also pointed out that nothing available to proceed against the petitioner/2nd accused and therefore, the prayer is liable to be allowed.

5. The learned Public Prosecutor, relying on the statement of the de facto complainant, submitted that there is threat at the instance of the 2nd accused also, stating that if the defacto complainant would not marry her brother, who is the 1st accused, he would commit suicide.

6. On perusal of the First Information Statement, the threat, as pointed out by the learned Public Prosecutor, was on 28.09.2019 and the 1st accused alleged to have forcefully taken the de facto complainant on 11.12.2019. So there is time gap between 28.9.2019 and 11.12.2019 as regards the alleged threat. Further it appears that, in fact, even though the 2nd accused/petitioner stated so, nothing happened subsequently and the attempt of the 1st accused to have forceful marriage with the de facto complainant failed.

7. Coming to the ingredients to attract offence under Section 506 of IPC, the offence of criminal intimidation defined under Section 503 of IPC to be looked into. Section 503 of IPC is as follows:

“503. Criminal Intimidation.-Whoever threatens another with any injury to his person, reputation or property, or to the person or reputation of any one in whom that person is interested, with intent to cause alarm to that person, or to cause that person to do any act which he is not legally bound to do, or to omit to do any act which that person is legally entitled to do, as the means of avoiding the execution of such threat, commits criminal intimidation.”

Thus, the ingredients to attract offence punishable under Section 506 of IPC are, “threatens another with injury to his person, reputation or property or to the person or reputation of any one in whom that person is interested”. Here, the statement as against the petitioner/2nd accused though couched in the form of a threat, the same by itself would not attract the offence under Section 503 punishable under Section 506 of IPC.

8. In view of the above discussion, it is observed that the statement given against the 2nd accused with regard to an occurrence prior to the present occurrence, for which the present crime was registered, is not sufficient to attract the offence. Thus the prayer for quashment is liable to be allowed.

9. In the result, this petition stands allowed and Annexure A2 Final Report and all further proceedings in C.P.No.12/2022 on the files of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-VIII, Ernakulam, arose out of Crime No.1191/2019 of Panangad Police Station, against the petitioner stand quashed with direction to the trial court to go with trial of the 1st accused.

Registry is directed to forward a copy of this order to the trial court for information and compliance forthwith.