IMPORTANT POINT
The main legal point established in the judgment is that appeals in complaint cases can only be entertained after obtaining special leave to appeal from the High Court, as per the provisions of section 372 and 378 of Cr.P.C.

JUDGMENT :

Notice upon O.P.no.2 has been effected and he has received the notice personally. By order dated 28.3.2023 the matter was adjourned with a view to provide one more opportunity to the O.P.no.2 and the matter was directed to be listed on 18.4.2023. When the matter was taken up, on repeated call, nobody has responded on behalf of the O.P.no.2 even the Vakalatnama has been filed earlier and these facts suggest that the O.P.No.2 has lost the interest in the matter and that is why the matter is being heard on merits in absence of O.P.No.2.

2. Heard Mr. Sanjay Kumar Thakur, the learned counsel for the petitioner, Mrs. Ruby Pandey and Mr. K.K. Bhatt, the learned counsels appearing for the respondent State in respective cases.

3. In W.P.(Cr.) No.426 of 2016 the prayer is made for quashing of the order dated 4.12.2014 passed in Cr.Appeal No.203 of 2014 by the learned Judicial Commissioner, Ranchi. In Cr.Revision No.11 of 2017, the prayer is made to set aside the judgment dated 26.11.2016 passed by the learned Additional Judicial Commissioner, Ranchi.

4. The learned counsel appearing for the petitioner submits that the issue involved in this case is with regard to filing of the appeal without taking special leave to appeal from the High Court in view of the amendment made under section 372 of Cr.P.C. He submits that without any Special Leave to Appeal the said appeal has been filed by the complainant and the learned court has entertained the appeal and has been pleased to set aside the judgment of the learned trial court and allowed the appeal. He took the Court to the provisions of section 372 of Cr.P.C and submits that in view of proviso to section 372 Cr.P.C read with sub section (4) of section 378 Cr.P.C. and submits that in view of these provisions the appeal can be maintained only after taking special leave to appeal from the High Court by the victim. He further submits that this aspect of the matter has already been settled in the judgments of the several High Courts as well as Full Bench of this Court in the case of “Tuklal Yadav Vs. The State of Jharkhand & Ors and analogous cases” [2018 SCC OnLine Jhar 1193]. Paragraph nos.8 and 28 of the said judgment are quoted below:

8. Taking into consideration all these facts, the following questions of law were referred by the Division Bench of this Court, for being adjudicated by Larger Bench, by order dated 09.07.2018 passed in these cases:- (i) Whether the acquittal appeals arising out of the appellate judgments/orders passed by the Courts of Session should be heard by a Division Bench, or it should be heard by the Single Judge in view of Proviso to Section 372, r/w 378 (3) of the Cr.P.C., as was being done earlier.

(ii) Whether the orders passed by the Hon'ble Single Judge, referring the acquittal appeals filed against the appellate judgments/orders passed by the Courts of Session, in view of Rule 152 of the High Court of Jharkhand Rules, is in consonance with Proviso to Section 372 of the Cr.P.C., or whether such appeals shall lie to the Court to which the appeals ordinarily lie against the orders of conviction, i.e., Single Judge, in view of Proviso to Section 372 of the Cr.P.C.

(iii) Whether Rule 152 of the High Court of Jharkhand Rules, 2001, needs to be amended in view of subsequent amendment of Section 372 of the Cr.P.C., w.e.f. 31.12.2009.

(iv) Whether the acquittal appeals arising out of acquittal orders/judgments passed by the Magistrates in complaint Cr. Appeal (S.J) No. 1281 of 2016 And connected matters. cases, can be entertained by the Courts of Session under the Proviso to Section 372 of the Cr.P.C., or the complainant has to prefer an application for special leave to appeal before the High Court, and if special leave is granted to him, to file the appeal in the High Court itself, as required under Section 378 (4) of the Cr.P.C.

(v) Whether such applications for leave/special leave to appeal, even in the acquittal appeals arising out of the appellate judgments/orders p