THE HON’BLE SMT. JUSTICE TIRUMALA DEVI EADA CRIMINAL PETITION Nos.7635, 7636 and 7639 OF 2025

COMMON ORDER:

Crl.Petition No.7635 of 2025 is filed by the petitioner –

accused seeking to club the STC NI Nos.5945, 5946 and 5948 of 2023 pending on the file of the IX Metropolitan Magistrate at Manoranjan Complex, Nampally, Hyderabad, together into one case as per the provisions under Section 219 of the Code of Criminal Procedure/242 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.

2. Crl.Petition No.7636 of 2025 is filed by the petitioner – accused to quash the order dated 09.11.2024 passed in Crl.M.P.No.1944 of 2024 in STC NI No.5946 of 2023 by the learned IX Metropolitan Magistrate at Manoranjan Complex.

3. Crl.Petition No.7639 of 2025 is filed by the petitioner – accused to quash the order dated 09.11.2024 passed in Crl.M.P.No.1941 of 2024 in STC NI No.5948 of 2023 by the learned IX Metropolitan Magistrate at Manoranjan Complex.

4. Heard the submissions of Sri V.O.Raja Veer, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri B.Rajendra Kumar, learned counsel for respondent No.1.

5. The learned petitioner counsel has submitted that six cheques were issued in a single transaction by the petitioner and that three cases have been registered against him. He further submitted that since all the cheques are issued in a single transaction, it can be taken up as a single matter instead of trying the petitioner in three cases for the same offense, all the cases can be clubbed together and heard as per Section 219 of Cr.P.C.

6. The learned counsel for respondent No.1 has filed counter and has opposed the petition saying that the petitioner is not coming forward for appearance and not furnishing the sureties and that NBW is pending against the petitioner. He further argued that the trial Court has rightly dismissed the petition filed by the petitioner seeking to club all the matter together and that the cognizance was taken and therefore, he prayed to dismiss the petitions.

7. Perused the record.

8. It is pertinent to refer to Section 219 of Cr.P.C, hence, the same is extracted hereunder:

“219. Three offences of same kind within year may be charged together.—(1) When a person is accused of more offences than one of the same kind committed within the space of twelve months from the first to the last of such offences, whether in respect of the same person or not, he may be charged with, and tried at one trial for, any number of them not exceeding three.

(2) Offences are of the same kind when they are punishable with the same amount of punishment under the same section of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) or of any special or local law:

Provided that, for the purposes of this section, an offence punishable under section 379 of the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) shall be deemed to be an offence of the same kind as an offence punishable under section 380 of the said Code, and that an offence punishable under any section of the said Code, or of any special or local law, shall be deemed to be an offence of the same kind as an attempt to commit such offence, when such an attempt is an offence.”

9. Thus, when the offence of same kind is committed within a gap of twelve months, they can be tried in one trial, when the number does not exceed three under the above said provision. In the present case, the record disclose that six cheques were issued but for the same transaction. The accused is alleged to have been due to a sum of Rs.6,06,216/- and to pay the same he has issued six cheuqes bearing Nos.412491 for Rs.50,000/-, 412492 for Rs.1,00,000/-, 412495 for Rs.32,500/-, 000004 for Rs.1,00,000/-, 000007 for Rs.50,000/-, 000001 for Rs.1,00,000/-, 000002 for Rs.1,00,000/-, 000003 for Rs.1,00,000/- . Therefore, it is borne out by record that all the cheques are issued under a single transaction and therefore, there is no harm in clubbing all the cases together and tried.

10. The counsel has further relied upon a decision of the Apex Court in Damodar S Prabhu v. Syed Babalal