Back
2025 Supreme(Ker) 825
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
G. GIRISH, J.
Jamal, S/o. Ali and Ors. – Petitioners
Versus
Peroor Developers Private Limited, Represented By Authorized Signatory, Sureshkumar, S/o. K.S. Govinda Pillai and Anr. – Respondents
Crl.MC No. 5637 of 2020, Crl.MC No. 5730 of 2020
Decided On : 27-03-2025
Advocate Appeared:
For the Appellant : BY ADV M.REVIKRISHNA
For the Respondent: BY ADVS. SRI.PRASUN.S FOR R1 SRI.P.V.SREENIJIN SRI.N.A.RETHEESH SRI. SANGEETHARAJ N.R., PUBLIC PROSECUTOR
IMPORTANT POINT
Criminal proceedings should not be used to resolve civil disputes, and essential ingredients of alleged offences must be established for prosecution.
Headnote:
(A) Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 - Section 482 - Indian Penal Code, 1860 - Sections 120B, 379, 420, 468, 506, 341 - Quashing of FIRs - Accused filed petitions to quash FIRs for offences including theft and cheating, alleging misuse of criminal proceedings for a civil dispute regarding land ownership - Court found that allegations did not establish essential ingredients of the offences - Court emphasized that civil disputes should not be converted into criminal offences to exert pressure - Judgments cited established that criminal proceedings cannot be used as a weapon for harassment in civil matters. (Paras 10 , 12 , 13 )
Facts of the case:
The accused misrepresented themselves as owners of land belonging to a private company and illegally auctioned its products, leading to criminal complaints.
Findings of Court:
The court quashed the FIRs, stating that the allegations did not constitute the offences charged, and that the matter was essentially a civil dispute.
Issues: The main issue was whether the criminal proceedings were maintainable given the civil nature of the dispute over land ownership.
Ratio Decidendi: The court ruled that civil disputes should not be pursued through criminal proceedings and emphasized the need to prevent abuse of the judicial process.
Result: Both petitions allowed; FIRs quashed.
ORDER :
The accused in Crime No.806/2020 and Crime No.1079/2020 of Njarakkal Police Station have filed these petitions under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973(in short, ‘Cr.PC’), to quash the F.I.Rs and proceedings initiated against them consequent to the registration of the aforesaid crimes. The offences involved in Crime No.806/2020 are under Sections 379, 420, 468 and 506 read with Section 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (in short, ‘IPC'). In Crime No.1079/2020, the offences slapped against the petitioners are under Sections 120B, 420, 379, 448, 341 and 506 read with Section 34 of IPC. The de facto complainant in both these crimes, a private company represented by its authorised officer, is arraigned as the first respondent in these petitions.
2. The prosecution case is summarised as follows:
An extent of 16 Acres of land in Elamkunnapuzha Village in Kochi Taluk remains under the exclusive possession and enjoyment of the first respondent company from the year 2007 onwards. Fish farming and prawn cultivation are being conducted in the aforesaid land. Accused Nos.1 to 4, who are the representatives of a Society/Samajam by name Kattachal Shrimp Farmers Samajam, Elamkunnapuzha, misrepresented themselves as the owners of the above said 16 Acres of land which belonged to the first respondent company, and illegally auctioned the products of the farming being conducted in that property, and gained unjust enrichment to the tune of Rs.1,50,00,000/-. Though the authorised representative of the first respondent company questioned the above activity and demanded back the auctioned amount received by the petitioners, they did not oblige. In the month of August, 2019, the petitioners again resorted to the auction of the above land belonging to the first respondent by creating forged documents, and attempted to encroach a major portion of the said property. When the authorized representative of the first respondent company requested to stop the above illegal activities, and to hand over the income reaped out of the company’s aqua cultivation, the petitioners criminally intimidated him. Crime No.806/2020 has been registered by the Njarakkal Police consequent to a complaint preferred by the authorised representative of the first respondent company before the District Police Chief, Ernakulam, in connection with the aforesaid incident which happened in the month of August, 2020. Again, on 10.09.2020, when the authorised representative of the first respondent company reached the above property to start the prawn farming activities, the petitioners stopped him and prevented him from entering into the said property. There again the petitioners trespassed into the first respondent’s land, took the yield against the protest of the authorised representative of the first respondent, and criminally intimidated him. Crime No.1079/2020 was registered by the Njarakkal Police Station on the basis of a complaint preferred by the authorised representative of the first respondent company before the District Police Chief, Ernakulam, in connection with the aforesaid incident which is said to have happened on 10.09.2020.
3. As per the F.I.R registered in Crime No.806/2020, the period of commission of the offences mentioned thereunder was from 01.01.2007 to 04.06.2020. In the F.I.R registered in Crime No.1079/2020, the period of commission of the offences mentioned thereunder was from 01.01.2004 to 10.09.2020. Thus, it is apparent from the aforesaid First Information Reports registered in these cases, that the grievance of the de facto complainant pertains to their exclusion and denial of the income from the 16 Acres of land which they owned, for a continuous period of 13 to 16 years.
4. In these petitions, the petitioners would contend that the attempt of the de facto complainant is to press into service criminal proceedings as an instrument of oppression, upon the Society represented by the petitioners, as a shortcut method to bypass a civil dis
