The duty of the police officer to follow the procedure under Section 155(i) and (ii) of Cr.P.C. when registering FIR for non-cognizable offences.

JUDGMENT :

(Prayer: Criminal Original Petition filed under Section 482 of Cr.P.C, praying to call for the records in Crime No.1162 of 2020 on the file of the first respondent police and quash the First Information Report pending against the petitioner.)

1. The Criminal Original Petition has been filed to quash the FIR in Crime No.1162 of 2020 on the file of the first respondent, registered for the offence under Sections 288 and 427 of IPC, as against the petitioner.

2. The learned counsel for the petitioner would submit that on the complaint lodged by the second respondent, the first respondent registered a case in Crime No.1162 of 2020 for the offences punishable under Sections 288 and 427 of IPC, as against the petitioner herein. Since the offences are non-cognizable offences, the Officer-in-Charge of the police station shall enter or cause to be entered the substance of the information in a book to be kept by such Officer in such form as the State Government may prescribe in this behalf, and refer 'the informant' to the jurisdictional Magistrate. Further, Section 155 (ii) of Cr.P.C., mandates that no police officer shall investigate a non-cognizable case without the order of a Magistrate.

2.1. He further submitted that the impugned FIR states that after receipt of the complaint from the second respondent, the first respondent requested the learned Judicial Magistrate No. I, Pollachi, to register the complaint as against the petitioner herein. Accordingly, the learned Magistrate by an order dated 29.05.2020, permitted the first respondent to register the FIR. There is absolutely no material to show that how the learned Magistrate had satisfied himself that this case was a fit case to register FIR. Therefore, the first respondent violated the provisions under Section 155(i) and (ii) of Cr.P.C., and the same has resulted in miscarriage of justice. In this regard the learned counsel for the petitioner also relied upon the Judgment reported in (2011) 1 CTC 395, in the case of Kathiravan Vs. Commissioner of Police, and prayed for quashment of the present FIR.

3. Per contra, the learned counsel appearing for the second respondent would submit that the second respondent lodged a complaint before the first respondent alleging that the second respondent is running a bakery shop in the name and style of Vishnu Bakery in the premises owned by the petitioner herein. It is further stated that there is a civil dispute pending between the second respondent and the petitioner on the file of the District Munsif Court, Pollachi, in respect of the tenancy issue. While being so, the petitioner and his sister-in-law's son were attempted to vacate the second respondent by putting up holes in the upper portion of the building and caused life threats on passing electric current in the said holes filled with water. Further the employees of the petitioner having entered the premises through back portion entry and did some work in the premises under the possession of the petitioner using drilling machine, despite objected by the second respondent herein.

3.1. He further submitted that on 28.05.2020, at about 06.45 hrs, the entire premises got collapsed after the closure of the bakery shop. Further the bakery materials worth about 2.5 lakhs, furniture and show case worth about 3.5 lakhs and cash of Rs.25,000/- were kept inside the shop, when the building was collapsed. Therefore, the second respondent lodged a complaint before the first respondent as against the petitioner herein. Further, there are very serious allegations are there in the complaint. Even then the first respondent without registering the offence under Section 307 of IPC, simply registered the case for the offences under Sections 288 and 427 of IPC, that too both the sections are non-cognizable offences. Even though the offences are non-cognizable offence in nature, the first respondent has rightly obtained necessary orders from the learned Judicial Magistrate No.I, Pollachi, and registered