IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH CRM-M-62149-2025 (O&M)

Reserved on 07.11.2025 Pronounced on 11.11.2025 RANJIT SINGH @ RANJEET SINGH ..... PETITIONER VERSUS STATE OF HARYANA .......RESPONDENT CORAM: HON'BLE MS. JUSTICE SHALINI SINGH NAGPAL Present: Mr. Aman Partap Singh, Advocate for Mr. Mohit Kumar Gujjar, Advocate for the petitioner.

Mr. Vikas Bhardwaj, AAG, Haryana.

SHALINI SINGH NAGPAL J.

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1. Ranjit Singh @ Ranjeet Singh, accused in criminal case arising out of FIR No.14 dated 02.10.2015 under Section 323, 406, 498-A and 506 Indian Penal Code, Women Police Station, District Kaithal, has filed this petition under Section 528 of Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 for quashing order dated 12.01.2017 of learned JMIC, Kaithal, declaring him a “proclaimed person”.

2. Learned counsel for the petitioner contends that the petitioner went abroad on 20.01.2015 and since then, had not returned to India. In his absence, FIR No.14 dated 02.10.2015 under Section 323, 406, 498-A and 506 was registered against him, on complaint of his wife Ranjeet Kaur. Proclamation under Section 82 Cr.P.C. was also issued and petitioner was declared a proclaimed person vide order dated 12.01.2017. It was argued that when the proclamation was issued, petitioner was abroad and no efforts were made by the Court to serve the warrants/proclamation through the Ministry of External Affairs, as per established procedure nor any genuine effort was made to ascertain petitioner’s foreign address or serve him through international channel. The proclamation order was passed mechanically and petitioner was not given proper opportunity to appear before the court. It is thus prayed that order dated 12.01.2017 be quashed.

3. Notice of motion.

4. Mr. Vikas Bhardwaj, AAG, Haryana, accepts notice on behalf of respondent-State and submits that despite publication of the proclamation, petitioner failed to appear before learned JMIC, Kaithal and was rightly declared proclaimed person. Supporting the order of learned trial Court dated 12.01.2017, he prayed for dismissal of the petition.

5. Section 82 Cr.P.C. which provides for publication of proclamation against a person absconding is reproduced hereunder for the facility of reference:-

—(1) If any Court has reason to believe (whether after taking evidence or not) that any person against whom a warrant has been issued by it has absconded or is concealing himself so that such warrant cannot be executed, such Court may publish a written proclamation requiring him to appear at a specified place and at a specified time not less than thirty days from the date of publishing such proclamation.

(2) The proclamation shall be published as follows:-

(i) (a) it shall be publicly read in some conspicuous place of the town or village in which such person ordinarily resides;

(b) it shall be affixed to some conspicuous part of the house or homestead in which such person ordinarily resides or to some conspicuous place of such town or village;

(c) a copy thereof shall be affixed to some conspicuous part of the Court-house;

(ii) the Court may also, if it thinks fit, direct a copy of the proclamation to be published in a daily newspaper circulating in the place in which such person ordinarily resides.

(3) A statement in writing by the Court issuing the proclamation to the effect that the proclamation was duly published on a specified day, in the manner specified in clause (i) of sub- section (2), shall be conclusive evidence that the requirements of this section have been complied with, and that the proclamation was published on such day. 50 1 [(4) Where a proclamation published under sub-section (1) is in respect of a person accused of an offence punishable under section 302, 304, 364, 367, 382, 392, 393, 394, 395, 396, 397, 398, 399, 400, 402, 436, 449, 459 or 460 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860), and such person fails to appear at the specified place and time required by the proclamation, the Court may, after making such inq