A Magistrate is empowered to dismiss a complaint under Section 203 Cr.P.C. upon finding no sufficient ground for proceeding, even without formal examination on oath, if the investigation or material available sufficiently demonstrates the absence of a prima facie case or establishes that the matter is purely civil in nature.

CAV JUDGMENT

HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE L. S. PIRZADA

1. Rule. Learned APP waives service for Rule on behalf of the respondent – State.

2. The present revision application has been preferred by the present applicant under Section 397 read with Section 401 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (In short “Cr.PC”) directing against the order passed by the learned 5th Additional Chief judicial Magistrate, Gandhinagar in Criminal Inquiry No.174 of 2022 passing an order below Exh.1 dismissing the complaint of the original complainant under Section 203 of the Cr.P.C on 28.05.2024.

3. By consent of the learned advocate for respective parties, the present revision application has been taken for final hearing and disposal of the revision application.

4. The short facts to the present revision application is that one private complaint came to be filed by the present petitioner – original complainant – accused nos.1, 2 and 3, the present respondent nos.2, 3 and 4 for the offence punishable under Sections 406, 409, 420, 465, 467, 468, 471, 114 and 120(B) of the IPC and it was prayed before the learned Magistrate Court to send the complaint to the concerned police station for the investigation under Section 156(3) of the Cr.P.C. The said complaint came to be filed before the learned Trial Court on 15.07.2022. The allegation made in the private complaint is that the complainant, at the relevant point of time, was not in India and the accused persons have forged partnership deed and reduced the percentage of the partnership and based on the same, an account was opened in collusion with the officer of the ICICI bank and the account which is opened with the ICICI Bank and the amount of sale proceeded was received in the said Bank account, was opened by forging signature and other relevant material including account opening form, etc and the present applicant was not in India when such account was opened and signature has been forged and after he arrived and from the passport, it was established at the relevant time that he was not in India when the account with the ICICI Bank was opened and by making such type of allegation, private complaint came to be filed. The accused persons have committed the offence under Sections 406, 409, 420, 465, 467, 468, 471, 114 and 120-B of the IPC as prayed to send the complainant for investigation under Section 156(3) of the Cr.P.C.

5. After filing of the complaint, the learned Magistrate Court has passed an order and perused the complaint, it was in the inquiry register that the complaint was posted for 26.07.2022 for the verification of the complainant and subsequently, the learned Magistrate has invoked the power under Section 210 of the Cr.P.C as from the complaint, it was disclosed that the present complainant has also given a complaint before Adalaj Police Station on 30.06.2022, hence, with the learned Magistrate has stayed with this private complaint under Section 210 of the Cr.P.C and directed the concerned police to submit the report of the investigation within 30 days and after the report has been submitted by the concerned police, no offence has been made out. Thereafter, the learned Magistrate has issued the notice to the complainant and the original complainant has objected to the report submitted by the Investigating Officer and subsequently, after considering the report submitted by the investigation agency and considering the submission of the original complainant, the learned Trial Court was pleased to dismiss the complaint