BEFORE THE MADURAI BENCH OF MADRAS HIGH COURT RESERVED ON : 25.08.2025 PRONOUNCED ON : 11.11.2025 CORAM:

THE HONOURABLE MRS.JUSTICE L.VICTORIA GOWRI Crl.R.C.(MD)No.894 of 2025 and CRL.M.P.(MD)No.9509 of 2025 Sundareshwari ... Petitioner Vs.

State of Tamil Nadu, through, The Deputy Superintendent of Police, C.C.I.W - C.I.D., Virudhunagar.

(Crime No.6 of 2017) ... Respondent PRAYER: Criminal Revision Petition is filed under Sections 438 and 442 of BNSS to call for the records pertaining to the judgment passed in Cr.M.P.No.1706 of 2018 in C.C.No.24 of 2018, dated 19.02.2024, on the file of Judicial Magistrate No.II, Virudhunagar and set aside the same and thus allow this Civil Revision Petition.

For Petitioner : Ms.Porkodi Karnan for Mr.Iniyavan For Respondent : Mr.S.Ravi, Additional Public Prosecutor

ORDER

The present Criminal Revision Petition is directed against the order dated 19.02.2024 in Cr.M.P.No.1706 of 2018 in C.C.No.24 of 2018 passed by the learned Judicial Magistrate No.II, Virudhunagar, whereby the discharge petition filed by the petitioner/accused No.2 under Section 239 Cr.P.C. came to be dismissed.

2. Factual Matrix:

The petitioner was serving as an Assistant in the Virudhunagar District Central Co-operative Bank, Regulating Marketing Branch. She was entrusted with the key and locker of Q-108, Amathur Primary Agricultural Co-operative Credit Society, along with one Nallaraj, under the double key locker system, during the period from 13.07.2011 to 04.05.2012. On the basis of a Special Report filed by the Inspection party pointing out irregularities in the Society during the period between 01.04.2010 and 31.08.2015, an enquiry under Section 81 of the Tamil Nadu Co-operative Societies Act, 1983 was ordered by the Deputy Registrar, Aruppukottai. Based on the enquiry report, a complaint was lodged by the Deputy Registrar of Co-operative Societies, Ravindran, against the Secretary Nallaraj (A1), Salesman Sundaramahalingam (A3), and the present petitioner (A2). It was alleged that the Secretary, during his tenure, had closed certain jewel loans after redemption of jewels, but failed to bring such accounts in the Day Book of the Society, thereby misappropriating the amounts remitted by the loanees. The prosecution imputed liability on the petitioner for certain items enumerated in the enquiry report (Items 16(1), 16(3), and 16(6)), quantifying a total loss of Rs.3,25,185/-. In C.C.No.24/2018, as per final report, the petitioner was alleged to be jointly responsible with the Secretary for a misappropriated amount of Rs.1,82,485/-. In the final report, the petitioner was arrayed as second accused for the offences punishable under sections 408, 409, 468, 471, 477(A) r/w 120(B) IPC. However, the petitioner asserts that there is no material in the final report explaining her specific role in the alleged misappropriation or any reference to her involvement in the statements recorded under Section 161(3) Cr.P.C.

3. Discharge Petition and Impugned Order:

The petitioner filed a discharge petition in Cr.M.P.No.1706 of

2018 before the learned Judicial Magistrate-II, Virudhunagar, contending that she had merely been a joint key-holder and had no active role in the alleged misappropriation. It was further contended that the allegations in the final report were vague and lacked specific attribution of any act of criminal intent. The learned Magistrate, after perusal of the final report and accompanying documents, dismissed the discharge petition holding that prima facie materials were available against the petitioner and that her liability as a joint custodian of the locker could be decided only during trial.

4. Grounds of Revision:

Challenging the said dismissal, the petitioner has approached this Court on the following grounds:

(i) The impugned order is contrary to law, evidence, and probabilities of the case.

(ii) The surcharge proceedings and criminal proceedings arise from the same transaction and the petitioner has been exonerated in surcharg