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CRM-M No.70512 of 2025 -1-

166

IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA

AT CHANDIGARH

CRM-M No.70512 of 2025

Date of decision: 22.12.2025

Narinder Pal .....Petitioners

versus

State of Punjab and another ..... Respondents

CORAM : HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAJESH BHARDWAJ

*****

Present :- Mr. Rajesh Kapila, Advocate and

Ms. Himani Kapila, Advocate

for the petitioner.

****

RAJESH BHARDWAJ , J. (Oral)

1. Prayer in the present petition is for quashing of impugned

order dated 18.10.2025 (Annexure P-3) passed by the learned Judicial

Magistrate Ist Class, Gurdaspur vide which the petitioner has been

declared proclaimed person in complaint case bearing NACT No.546 of

2022 dated 07.10.2022 titled as ‘M/s Shri Ram City Union Finance

Limited vs. Narinder Pal’, under Section 138 of Negotiable Instruments

Act, 1881. Further prayer has been made for granting ad-interim relief to

the petitioner during the pendency of the present petition.

2. It has been contended by learned counsel for the petitioner

that the petitioner has been falsely prosecuted in criminal complaint filed

under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act. He has submitted

that after registration of the complaint, the petitioner was summoned to

face trial vide order dated 18.11.2022. He has further submitted that

thereafter vide orders dated 21.04.2025 and 04.06.2025, non bailable

RITTU

2025.12.24 10:24

I attest to the accuracy and

integrity of this document

CRM-M No.70512 of 2025 -2-

warrants against the petitioner were issued and thus, on 06.08.2025,

proclamation against the petitioner was issued for 18.10.2025. He has

further submitted that the learned trial Court vide order dated 18.10.2025,

declared the petitioner as proclaimed person. He has submitted that the

petitioner is not aware about the proceedings pending against the

petitioner as he was neither served in the present complaint nor he

received any summons as he was working at Jammu. He has further

submitted that when the petitioner came to know about the order dated

18.10.2025, he filed anticipatory bail petition before the learned trial

Court, however the same was dismissed vide order dated 02.12.2025. He

has submitted that the order declaring the petitioner as proclaimed person

is in violation of the provisions of Section 82 of Cr.P.C. He has submitted

that the petitioner is keen to join the proceedings. He has thus submitted

that the petitioner be granted protection for appearing before the learned

trial Court.

3. Notice of motion to official respondent No.1 at this stage.

4. On asking of the Court, Ms. Ramta Chowdhary, DAG,

Punjab appears and accepts notice on behalf of the respondent-State. He

has opposed the submissions made by learned counsel for the petitioner

and has submitted that the petitioner has rightly been declared as

proclaimed person, who remained absent from the Court despite orders.

5. After hearing counsel for the parties and perusing the record,

it is apparent that the petitioner was prosecuted in criminal complaint

filed under Section 138 of Negotiable Instruments Act. Due to non

appearance of the petitioner, he was declared as proclaimed person.

Without commenting anything about the authenticity of the ground of

RITTU

2025.12.24 10:24

I attest to the accuracy and

integrity of this document

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absence taken by the petitioner, this Court proceed to decide the matter as

now the petitioner is ready and keen to join the proceedings.

6. Consequently, the present petition is disposed of and the

impugned order dated 18.10.2025 passed in a Complaint Case bearing

NACT No.546 of 2022 whereby the petitioner was declared as Proclaimed

person by the learned Judicial Magistrate Ist Class, Gurdaspur is hereby

quashed subject to payment of costs of Rs.25,000/- by the petitioner to be

deposited in the trial Court within ten days from the date of receipt of

certified copy of this order, which will be paid to the

complainant/respondent No.2. The trial Court will issue notice to the

complainant and on his appearance, payment of cost