IMPORTANT POINT
Impersonation on social media without evidence of deception or wrongful gain does not constitute cheating under IPC or IT Act.

JUDGMENT :

(Ravindra Maithani, J.)

The challenge in this petition is made to the Charge Sheet No. 437 of 2020 in FIR No. 294 of 2020 dated 08.05.2020, under Sections 419, 420 IPC and Section 66-D of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (“IT Act”), Police Station Kotwali Roorkee, District Haridwar; cognizance order dated 07.08.2021 passed in Criminal Case No. 1646 of 2021, State v. Garvit Danu @ Govind Singh, by the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Roorkee, District Haridwar (“the case”) as well as the entire proceedings of the case.

2. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the record.

3. The case is based on an FIR lodged by the respondent no. 2, a police officer. According to it, on a social media platform, the petitioner has shown himself as working in Uttarakhand Police and also placed a photograph of police in his profile cover photo. Thereby, the petitioner has been impersonating and committing fraud and cheating with the public in general. The FIR further records that the petitioner had also posted misleading information on his social media account. Based on this FIR, investigation was conducted and after investigation, charge sheet has been submitted against the petitioner, which is the basis of the case, in which on 07.08.2021, cognizance has been taken. It is impugned herein.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner would submit that even if the averments made in the FIR are taken at their face value and accepted in its entirety, it does not make out any prima facie case. He would submit that the averments as made and as allegedly established by the prosecution even do not prima facie make any kind of cheating, impersonation or any wrongful gain to the petitioner. He would submit that prima facie case under Sections 419, 420 IPC and Section 66-D of the IT Act is not made out. Therefore, it is argued that interference of this Court is warranted in this matter.

5. Learned State Counsel would submit that the petitioner in his social media platform had shown himself as working in Uttarakhand Police and thereby he impersonated and cheated and defrauded the public in general and has also uploaded misleading information.

6. This is a petition under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (“the Code”). The jurisdiction is much wide to give effect to any order under the Code to prevent abuse of the process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice. But, it is much guided by the principles of law as laid down by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in various judgments.

7. In the case of State of Haryana and Others Vs. Bhajan Lal and Others, 1992 Supp (1) SCC 335, the Hon’ble Supreme Court discussed the scope of the jurisdiction under Section 482 of the Code and in para 102 observed as hereunder:-

“102. In the backdrop of the interpretation of the various relevant provisions of the Code under Chapter XIV and of the principles of law enunciated by this Court in a series of decisions relating to the exercise of the extraordinary power under Article 226 or the inherent powers under Section 482 of the Code which we have extracted and reproduced above, we give the following categories of cases by way of illustration wherein such power could be exercised either to prevent abuse of the process of any court or otherwise to secure the ends of justice, though it may not be possible to lay down any precise, clearly defined and sufficiently channelised and inflexible guidelines or rigid formulae and to give an exhaustive list of myriad kinds of cases wherein such power should be exercised.

(1) Where the allegations made in the first information report or the complaint, even if they are taken at their face value and accepted in their entirety do not prima facie constitute any offence or make out a case against the accused.

(2) Where the allegations in the first information report and other materials, if any, accompanying the FIR do not disclose a cognizable offence, justifying an investigation by police