Police actions in raiding history-sheeter's house for arrest in cognizable case have reasonable nexus to official duties, requiring prior sanction under Section 197 CrPC for prosecution of protected public servants; proceedings quashed absent sanction.

JUDGMENT :

M A CHOWDHARY, J.

1. By way of this common judgment, this court proposes to dispose of all the above titled clubbed four petitions, in view of identical and similar facts involved in them, arising out of the same complaint, cognizance order dated 05.11.2012 passed by the trial court and order dated 26.05.2014 passed by the Revisional Court upholding the cognizance order, against all the petitioners as accused.

2. Petitioners, invoking the inherent jurisdiction of this court under Sections 561-A of J&K CrPC (akin to Section 482 CrPC and 528 BNSS), inter alia, have prayed quashing of the following:

(i) Criminal complaint under Sections 341/ 342 / 447 /452 /506 / 166/ 120-B RPC titled ‘Rajat Jandial V/S Sh. J. P. Sharma & Ors.’ pending in the Court of Ld. Sub Judge (Special Municipal Mobile Magistrate), Jammu;

(ii) Order dated 05.11.2012 whereby the Court of Ld. Sub-Judge (Special Municipal Mobile Magistrate), Jammu in the aforesaid complaint issued process against the petitioner and proforma respondents under Sections 341/342/506/166/120-B RPC; and

(iii) Order dated 26.05.2014, whereby the Court of Ld. Sessions Judge, Jammu dismissed the revision petition No. 51/Revision titled ‘Rajeshwar Singh & Ors. V/S Rajat Jandial & Ors’ thereby upholding the order of the learned trial court dated 05.11.2012.”

3. A complaint titled ‘Rajat Jandial V. J. P. Sharma & Ors.’ came to be filed for the commission of offences punishable U/Ss 341/342/447/448/452/506/166/120-B RPC against the police officers, including the petitioners herein, by respondent No.1-Rajat Jandial before the Court of learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Jammu with the accusations that on 20.01.2012, the accused police officers along with a strong posse of police personnel reached the house of the complainant at Greater Kailash, Jammu and the entire area was cordoned; that at about 3.30- 3.45 pm, when complainant was about to leave in car No.JK02-AU-0018 , for Jammu Airport, he was intercepted by SHO, P/S Gangyal, Jammu who used abusive, aggressive and insulting language, asked the complainant whether he was Gola Shah’s son and on getting reply in affirmative, his car was stopped and he was wrongfully restrained; that the said SHO called the other police officers including petitioner Abdul Jabbar from a nearby parked Hyundai vehicle and all the accused entered into the house of the complainant, with the intention to arrest the father of the complainant and during the said exercise, they allegedly committed several illegalities; that the presence of petitioner Bishnesh Kumar, SHO Police Station Gandhi Nagar, Jammu and Abdul Jabbar ASP was ‘prima facie’ abuse of authority as they were neither associated with any team nor the case, therefore, they were illegally present there; that the raid without any orders is illegal and amounts to excessing of jurisdiction; that the whole incident of raid was allegedly recorded in camera by one police constable brought on spot by Bishnesh Kumar, SHO Police Station Gandhi Nagar, Jammu, which is not permitted under law as it infringes the right to privacy of a citizen especially when women reside in that house.

4. The learned Special Municipal Magistrate, Jammu, vide order dated 0