High Court cannot quash criminal proceedings under Section 528 B.N.S.S. based on accused's denial of allegations or by conducting mini-trial at pre-trial stage when direct allegations if true disclose offences.

JUDGMENT :

ANIL KUMAR CHOUDHARY, J.

Heard the parties.

2. This Criminal Miscellaneous Petition has been filed invoking the jurisdiction of this Court under Section 528 of the B.N.S.S., 2023 with the prayer to quash the entire criminal proceedings in connection with Adityapur P.S. Case No. 234 of 2024 registered for the offences punishable under Sections 341, 379, 504, 506/34 of the Indian Penal Code.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the investigation of the case is still going on and charge sheet has not yet been submitted in this case.

4. The brief fact of the case is that the allegation made against the petitioners is that when the petitioners came to know that the informant lodged a complaint case against the petitioners in the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Jamshedpur and they applied pressure upon the informant to withdraw the said case and also threatened that they would kill the family members of the informant. Before lodging the FIR on 24.06.2024, some unknown persons stopped the informant and threatened the informant to kill him unless he withdraws the said case instituted by the informant against the petitioners. Such unknown persons also committed theft of gold chain worth Rs.2,50,000/-, a Titan watch and cash of Rs.32,000/- after wrongfully restraining him. The allegation against the petitioners is that on 23.03.2024 when the daughter of the informant talked to the petitioners over the phone and requested them not to fight and quarrel, the petitioners committed criminal intimidation by threatening to abduct the informant and also caused alarm by saying that his father had already gone to jail for committing a murder but now he is at large and roaming outside. On the basis of the written report submitted by the informant, police registered Adityapur P.S. Case No. 234 of 2024 for the said offences and took up investigation of the case; which, is submitted by the learned counsel for the petitioner is still going on.

5. Learned counsel for the petitioners relies upon the judgment of this Court in the case of Pawan Kumar Lakhotia & Others vs. The State of Jharkhand & Another passed in Cr.M.P. No. 3095 of 2021 dated 26th April, 2024 and submits that in the facts of that case where a purely civil dispute was given a cloak of criminal case, this Court quashed and set aside the entire criminal proceeding including the order taking cognizance.

6. Learned counsel for the petitioners next relies upon the judgment of this Court in the case of Raj Prakash & Another vs. The State of Jhakrhand & Another passed in Cr.M.P. No. 336 of 2023 dated 15th May, 2024 and submits that in the facts of that case as no offence punishable under Section 506 of the Indian Penal Code was made out, this Court quashed and set aside the entire criminal proceeding.

7. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that in this case also, the allegations against the petitioners are false. The petitioners have not committed any offence. The informant is the maternal-uncle (Mamaji) of the petitioners. The dispute between the parties is regarding payment of interest on the private loan amount. The allegations are baseless. The FIR was lodged after the petitioner No.1 sent the legal notice. The petitioner No.2 to 4 have been arrayed as accused persons in the case only because they are respectively father and brother-in-law of the petitioner No.1. Hence, it is submitted that the prayer as prayed for in this Criminal Miscellaneous Petition be allowed.

8. Learned Addl.P.P. appearing for the State on the other hand vehemently opposes the