By the Court.—This is a bunch of connected criminal writ petitions. We are treating Crl. Misc. Writ Petition No. 15622 of 2006, Udaiveer v. State of U.P. and others, and Crl. Misc. Writ Petition No. 15687 of 2006, Ram Chandra Mishra v. State of U.P. and others, as the leading writ petitions.

2. We have heard learned Counsel for the petitioners, Sri A.K. Sand, learned AGA for the State of U.P. and Sri R.K. Mishra and Sri H.P. Dubey, learned Counsel for the U.P. Power Corporation.

3. An affidavit dated 21.7.2007 has been filed in Crl. Misc. Writ Petition No. 15687 of 2006 by Dy. S.P. (Legal Cell), DGP Headquarters, Lucknow, on behalf of the DGP Headquarters.

4. The writ petitions were filed challenging the registration of criminal cases against the petitioners, inter alia, under Section 135 of the Electricity Act, 2003, on the basis of FIRs essentially alleging theft of electricity. The petitions have arisen because in a judgment and order, the leading case in the connected bunch of cases being Crl. Misc. Writ Petition No. 10090 of 2005, Mustaq @ Mustafa v. State of U.P. and others, (2006 (6) ALJ 257 : 2006(7) ADJ 98 (DB)) delivered on 15.9.2006, a Division Bench of Hon. Amit