IN THE HIGH COURT OF MADHYA PRADESH AT GWALIOR BEFORE HON'BLE SHRI JUSTICE MILIND RAMESH PHADKE ON THE 20^th OF JANUARY, 2026 MISC. CRIMINAL CASE No. 17374 of 2023 HEERA SINGH GURJAR @ HARI SINGH Versus THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH AND OTHERS Appearance:

Shri Arvind Kumar Dwivedi - Advocate for the petitioner.

Ms Anjali Gyanani - Public Prosecutor for the respondent No.1 and

2/State.

Shri Vivek Kumar Mishra - Advocate for the respondent [R-3].

ORDER This petition under Section 482 of Cr.P.C. has been filed by the petitioner seeking quashment of FIR bearing Crime No.107/2023 registered at Police Station Sirol District Gwalior for offence punishable under Sections

420, 406 of IPC and all consequential proceedings arising therefrom.

2. As per prosecution case, on 17-04-2023, Police Station Sirol registered a report to the effect that the complainant, Ashok Kumar, son of Thakur Das, resident of Kuryala, District Datia, submitted a written application at Police Station Sirol stating that on 12-03-2021 an agreement was executed between the complainant and the petitioner with respect to land bearing Survey No. 131 admeasuring 0.533 hectare, Survey No. 149 (min) admeasuring 0.233 hectare, and Survey No. 150 admeasuring 0.3550 hectare, totaling three plots with a combined area of 1.121 hectares, situated at Village Sirol, District Gwalior. It was alleged that an amount of Rs.70,00,000 (seventy lakh rupees) was paid by the applicant in the presence of witnesses, and an additional amount of Rs.35,00,000 (thirty-five lakh rupees) was paid through Cheque No. 934649, in favor of the complainant, and a period of 18 months was fixed for compliance with the terms of the agreement. However, thereafter, Hira Singh alias Hari Singh Gurjar, resident of Sheetla Nagar, Sirol Road, Gwalior, executed another agreement dated 19-07-2021 in favor of a third person, namely Nishu, son of Ramjilal Gurjar. On account of the aforesaid act, it was alleged that the petitioner committed cheating with the complainant. On the basis of the said application, Police Station Sirol registered the present FIR against the petitioner.

3. It is submitted by learned counsel for the petitioner that the impugned First Information Report has been lodged by respondent No. 2 in collusion with the officials of Police Station Sirol and is nothing but a misuse of the criminal machinery to exert pressure upon the petitioner. The genesis of the dispute is purely civil in nature. The complainant himself had earlier instituted a civil suit for specific performance of the alleged agreement on 11.10.2022, which is presently pending before the Court of the Ninth Additional Sessions Judge, Gwalior, as Case No. 958/2022. In the said civil proceedings, pleadings on behalf of both the plaintiff and the defendant have already been completed and the matter is sub judice.

4. It is further submitted that when the complainant realized that, in view of the forged nature of the alleged agreement, he would not succeed in the civil suit, he adopted the mala fide course of setting the criminal law in motion. With an oblique motive and in connivance with the Station House Officer of Police Station Sirol, the present FIR has been registered only to harass the petitioner and to create undue pressure for settling a civil dispute through criminal prosecution. The allegations contained in the FIR, even if taken at their face value, do not disclose the commission of any cognizable offence and are intrinsically connected with the subject matter of the pending civil suit. The criminal proceedings are thus clearly an afterthought and are being used as a tool of coercion, which is impermissible in law. This Hon’ble Court, in M.Cr.C. No. 10742 of 2024 (Hakim Singh Vs. State of Madhya Pradesh and Others), vide order dated 29.10.2025, has categorically held that once a complainant has already availed the civil remedy by filing a suit for specific performance of contract, the continuation of criminal proceedings on the same s