Point of Law : Quash of Criminal proceedings - No compliance of provision of Section 111 Cr.PC – Summons issued bad in law.

ORDER :

Since common questions of facts and law are involved in the above captioned cases and parties to the lis are same and by way of these petitions challenge has been laid to orders dated 22.9.2021, passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge in Criminal Revision Petition Nos. 83 of 2018, 4 of 2019, and 56 of 2019, same were heard together and are being decided vide common judgment.

2. By way of instant petitions filed under Section 482 Cr.PC, challenge has been laid to order(s) dated 22.9.2021, passed by the Additional Sessions Judge Sarkaghat in Criminal Petitions No. 83/18, 4 of 2019 and 56 of 2019, affirming order(s) dated 25.9.2018, 11.12.2018 and 26.8.2019, passed by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Dharampur, District Mandi, whereby summons came to be issued to the petitioners by Sub- Divisional Magistrate, Dharampur, taking cognizance of the Kalandra filed by the Police Station Dharampur against the petitioners, alleging therein that they are interfering in the land of respondent-complainant and have also threatened the complaint to do away of their lives.

3. For brevity, facts of Cr.MMO No. 629 of 2021 are being discussed. Briefly stated facts are that police after having received the complaint from respondent No.2 that petitioners have interfered in the possession of the land by cutting grass and they have also threatened to do away with their lives, conducted the investigation and thereafter filed Kalandra before the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, praying therein to proceed against the petitioners under Sections 107, 150 and 145 of Cr.PC.

4. Sub-Divisional Magistrate Dharampur, vide order dated 25.9.2018, (Annexure P-3), ordered for issuance of process against the petitioners (respondents therein) for 29.10.2018. Being aggrieved and dissatisfied with issuance of the process without there being compliance of provisions contained under Sections 107, 111 and 112 Cr.PC, respondents filed criminal revision petition in the court of learned Additional Sessions Judge, praying therein to quash and set-aside the summoning order issued by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Dharampur.

5. Learned Additional Sessions Judge Sarkaghat, Mandi, vide order dated 22.9.2021 (Annexure P-5) dismissed the criminal revision petition and directed the parties to appear before the court below on 8.10.2021, with further direction to Sub-Divisional Magistrate to decide the case within three months. In the aforesaid background petitioners have approached this Court in the instant proceedings filed under Section 482 Cr.PC, praying therein to set-aside aforesaid orders dated 22.9.2021, passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge and 25.9.2018, passed by learned Sub-Divisional Magistrate.

6. Having heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the material available on record vis-à-vis reasoning assigned in the orders impugned in the instant proceedings, this Court finds force in the submissions made by Mr. J.L. Sharma, learned counsel appearing for the petitioners that Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Dharampur, after having received Kalandra/inquiry report from the Police Station concerned could not have directly issued summons to the petitioners (respondents therein), rather before doing so, it ought to have followed the procedure provided in statutory provisions as contained under Sections 107, 111 and 112 of the Cr.PC. Mr. Sharma, argued that bare perusal of order dated 25.9.2018, (Annexure P-3), whereby respondents (petitioners herein) came to be summoned for 29.10.2018 clearly reveals that Sub-Divisional Magistrate directly on the basis of report submitted by the Reader of his court proceeded to issue notice, whereas he before issuing process ought to have formed an opinion whether persons sought to be summoned are likely to commit breach of peace and disturb the public tranquility or not. Since no opinion, if any, as stated herein above, ever came to be formed by the Sub- Divisional Magistrate before issuing process against the respondents, order