BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT DATED : 01.12.2025 CORAM THE HONOURABLE MRS.JUSTICE L.VICTORIA GOWRI and Crl.MP(MD)Nos.18318 & 18319 of 2025 Mr.Shahul Hameed ... Petitioner / Accused No.1 Vs.

1. State of Tamilnadu rep by The Inspector of Police, District Crime Branch, Tirunelveli District.

In Crime No.30 of 2019 ... 1^st Respondent/Complainant

2.Romalt Terric Pinto ... 2^nd Respondent /

Defacto complainant Prayer: Criminal Original Petition filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, to call for the records pertaining to the Charge Sheet in C.C.No.2094 of 2022 on the file of the learned Judicial Magistrate I, Tirunelveli District, and allow the quash petition as the same as illegal in so far as the petitioner is concerned.

For Petitioner : Mr.G.Anto Frince For R1 : Mr.S.Ravi Additional Public Prosecutor

O R D E R

The criminal original petition was filed to quash the final report in C.C.No.2094 of 2022 on the file of the learned Judicial Magistrate I, Tirunelveli District.

2. The petitioner is the first accused, who is the proprietor of Hamid Marine Pvt.Ltd situated at Erukkanthurai Village, Tirunelveli District, had applied to the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) for renewal of the consent order required to operate his factory. The said application was returned by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) on 17.07.2019 seeking additional particulars and which were thereafter resubmitted on 01.09.2019 with the required details. While the said application was under consideration, it is alleged that the first accused, who is the petitioner herein, in conspiracy with the second accused, fabricated and used a forged consent order purported to have been issued by the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board. The said forged document allegedly bore a fabricated signature of Mr.Romald Derrick Pinto, the District Environmental Engineer, who is the second respondent herein and falsely indicated that TNPCB, Tirunelveli, had granted consent under Section 25 of Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, and Section 21 of the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981, valid up to 31.03.2021 for the operation of Hameed Marine Private Limited. For the for the creation and forgery of the concocted consent deed as issued by the 2^nd Respondent herein, crime against the petitioner and the second accused came to be registered and the same has culminated into filing of the charge sheet in C.C.No.2094 of 2022 before the learned Judicial Magistrate I, Tirunelveli District. Seeking to quash the same, this Criminal Original Petition has been filed.

3. The learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the petitioner herein, who is arrayed as first accused is a senior citizen, who had been bona fidely running the Hameed Marine Private Limited for more than a decade with proper permission from the various departments, including the consent order from the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB). However, due to his old age, he approached the second accused to obtain a renewal of the consent order from the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) to operate his factory. It is all for the fraudulent act committed by the 2^nd accused. The petitioner herein has been roped into the said case as first accused and he has nothing to do with the alleged concoction and forgery of the consent Deed issued by the 2^nd respondent and sought for quashing the Charge sheet.

4. The learned Additional Public Prosecutor pointed out that the second respondent, in his statement under Section 161(3) Cr.P.C., has made it clear he had never issued such consent order at any point of time and he himself had categorically explained that the nature of the consent order, which would normally be issued would be in a watermark paper with hologram sticker with the signature of the second respondent as well as referring to certain reports obtained in this regard in the reference column. In the absence of such materials in the