The absence of notice to the complainant before taking cognizance of the offences vitiated the subsequent proceedings.

1. The revision petition had laid a complaint on 22.4.2007 before Sambavar Vadakarai Police Station and the same was registered in Cr.No.61 of 2007 under Sections 147, 148, 447, 342, 506(ii) and 379 (NP) I.P.C. In the complaint he had alleged that he is supervising the coconut thope belonging to A.R.S. Ramalingam, that on 24.7.2007 at about 10.00 a.m. one Jabarullah S/o Peer Mohammed and 20 other persons, whose names are not known to the complainant, but they could be identified by him, entered into the coconut thope, plucked coconut and removed in tractors, that he received information at 4.00 p.m. and proceeded to the occurrence place where he saw about 20 henchmen under the leadership of the first accused trespassed to the coconut thope and removed about 20,000/- coconuts worth about Rs.50,000/-by tractors bearing Registration No.TN-76-B-3700, TN-72-Z-1375 and TDT 8560, that while the complainant prevented them along with 5 other persons, they criminally intimidated them, that they were detained in the thope by the trespassers upto 10 p.m. and while the accused left the place in Maruti Amni Van bearing Registration No.TN-76-B-4154, they threatened him that they would kill him if he identified them.

2. After the investigation, the first respondent laid a charge sheet before the Judicial Magistrate Court, Tenkasi under Sections 447, 342, 506(2) and Section 379 (NP) I.P.C against Jabarullah and three named persons. The learned Judicial Magistrate took cognizance of the offences and assigned C.C.No.230 of 2008. He proceeded with the trial of the case. As many as 14 witnesses were examined before the learned Judicial Magistrate and the case was posted for hearing arguments of both sides. At that time, the petitioner filed an application under Section 173 Cr.P.C.(Protest Petition) requesting the Court to order for further investigation by some other police station. For the said purpose he intended to file a writ petition before the High Court and to adjourn the case by two months to enable him to get the orders.

3. In the said petition he has raised so many grounds for ordering reinvestigation. Both the respondents filed objections to the petition by the complainant/petitioner. The learned Judicial Magistrate, Shencottah has dismissed the petition filed by this petitioner by observing that he is not entitled to seek for reinvestigation of further investigation as per the decision of the Supreme Court in 2009 SAR (Cri) 851 [Reeta Nag v. State of West Bengal]. Hence this revision.

4. Even though in the protest petition and the present revision petition, various other grounds have been raised by the petitioner for ordering reinvestigation or further investigation, for the disposal, it is sufficient to deal with only one issue in this matter, i.e., whether the learned Judicial Magistrate issued notice to the complainant before taking cognizance of the offence against the accused? If not, what is the legal consequences?

5. After hearing the learned counsel for both sides, this Court on 1.7.2010 passed a direction calling for a report from the Judicial Magistrate, Shenkottah, Tirunelveli District, as to whether notice was issued from the Court concerned to the defacto complainant before taking cognizance of the offence after filing of the final report in this case. Responding to this, the learned Judicial Magistrate submitted a report stating that final report under Section 173 Cr.P.C in Cr.No.61 of 2007 of Sambavarvadakarai Police Station was filed before the Judicial Magistrate, Tenkasi on 27.11.2007 and the same was taken on file on the same date as C.C.No.438 of 2007 under Section 447, 342, 506(2) and 379 I.P.C., that no notice was issued to the defacto complainant from the Judicial Magistrate, Tenkasi, at the time of taking cognizance, subsequently Sambavarvadakarai Police Station was brought under Judicial Magistrate, Tenkasi and consequently the said CC.No.433 of 2003 was transferred to the Judicial Magistrate, Sh