The main legal point established in the judgment is the magistrate's jurisdiction to disagree with the police report, take cognizance, and issue process and summons to the accused, as well as the court's inherent power under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure to prevent abuse of process or secure the ends of justice.

Judgment

Mr. Harpreet Kaur Jeevan, J.

CRM-372-2024

1. By way of present application, applicant/petitioner seeks permission to place on record copy of the final report filed under Section 173 Cr.P,C. by the Investigating Agency as Annexure P-7, Copy of Final Statement as Annexure P-8, Copy of Jamabandias Annexure P-9 and photographs as Annexure P-10 and for exemption for filing certified copy of the same.

2. Application is allowed as prayed for subject to all just exceptions.

3. Documents Annexures P-7 to P-10 are taken on record.

Main Case

1. Prayer in the present petition under Section 482 of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred as Code of 1973) is for quashing of the impugned order dated 26.07.2022 (Annexure P-6) whereby, the trial Court has declined the protest petition filed by the petitioner/complainant and accepted the cancellation report in FIR No.57 dated 28.04.2016 under Sections 406, 498-A IPC, registered at P.S. Sadar Phagwara, District Kapurthala.

2. The factual matrix is that the petitioner-wife presented a written complaint to Senior Superintendent of Police, Kapurthala, with the allegations that she got married to Baljinder Singh Cheema on 25.12.2011 and a sum of Rs.14-15 Lakhs was spent by her parents at the time of her marriage. Her husband left India and went to Belgium after about one and half months. Initially her husband used to take care of the petitioner and used to talk to her on phone but at the instance of relatives of the husband of the petitioner, he stopped interacting with the petitioner. In the said complaint, the petitioner had leveled specific allegations against Surinder Singh (brother-in-law), Sharanjeet Kaur(sister-in-law) and Jaspinder Kaur (daughter of Surinder Singh), who are relatives of her husband and living in India in the same house where the petitioner went and stayed after her marriage.

2.1 After conducting the investigation, the Investigating Agency presented the final report under Section 173 Cr.P.C. only against the husband of the petitioner. His relatives who were named in the complaint were declared innocent and their names were kept in column No.2 of the report. The husband of the petitioner was declared proclaimed person by Judicial Magistrate 1st Class, Phagwara vide order dated 07.09.2019 (Annexure P-2). As per the order dated 19.11.2019 (Annexure P-3), Judicial Magistrate 1st Class, Phagwara had closed the prosecution evidence under Section 299 Cr.P.C. and ordered to consign the file to the record room.

2.2. The petitioner had challenged the said order by way of filing of CRM-M-27512-2020 but the same was dismissed as withdrawn by the Coordinate Bench of this Court vide order dated 18.09.2020 (Annexure P-4) with the liberty to the petitioner to avail appropriate remedy by way of filing a protest petition for redressal of her grievances.

2.3. The petitioner had presented a protest petition dated 07.10.2020 before the Area Magistrate, Phagwara (Annexure P-5) raising a challenge for closing the proceedings in the final report under Section 173 Cr.P.C. without giving any opportunity of hearing to her. The challenge was also raised for declaring Surinder Singh, Sharanjeet Kaur and Jaspinder Kaur as innocent by the Investigating Agency alleging that there are specific allegations against the said persons for giving merciless beatings to the petitioner and that in February, 2012 the petitioner was thrown out of her matrimonial house by the said accused persons. It was further alleged that it is has been specifically mentioned in the FIR that the said accused persons had admitted their guilt and took the petitioner back in the matrimonial house in March, 2012 but their demand for dowry and harassment to the petitioner did not end and she was again thrown out of her matrimonial home by Surinder Singh, Sharanjeet Kaur and Jaspinder Kaur in March, 2012 itself after giving her merciless beatings. It was further alleged that at the time of turning out the petitioner from he