THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE E.V. VENUGOPAL CRIMINAL PETITION No.8530 OF 2023

O R D E R:

The present Criminal Petition is filed seeking to quash the proceedings against petitioners/accused Nos.1 to 5 in C.C.No.6641 of 2020 on the file of the learned II Additional Metropolitan Magistrate, Cyberabad, at L.B.Nagar (for short, “the trial Court”) for the offences punishable under Sections 354-D, 504, 506 r/w 34 of I.P.C.

2. Heard Mr.Laxmaiah, learned counsel representing Mr.V.Brahmaiah Chowdary, learned counsel for the petitioners, Mr.E.Ganesh, learned Assistant Public Prosecutor appearing for respondent No.1-State and Ms.V.Mythili, learned Legal Aid counsel appearing for respondent No.2.

3. The brief facts of the case are that on 28.11.2019 respondent No.2 filed a complaint against the petitioner Nos.1 to 5 stating that since, 2017 the complainant had various mobile numbers viz., 8790942952, 7036674631, 901065399, 6300964030, 6301134497, 9949533439, 8340813892 and 9703611271 and that she received phone calls and messages from various unknown mobile numbers which are 9542321634, 9705449356, 9848292840, 7989540561, 63011344971, 7382404836, 9908394286, 8121505606, 8639891539, 6300377855, 8466897323, 996394046 and 9908869163, stalking the complainant, abused her in filthy language and threatened her with dire consequence; that from last few months she received phone calls from unknown No.83040813892 and introduced himself as Srinivas, forced her to marry him; that he sent porn videos and pictures to her. It is noticed that petitioners Nos.1 and 2 are brothers and petitioner Nos.3 to 5 are their friends. Basing on the said facts, the present complaint is filed against the petitioners for the offences punishable under Sections

354-D, 504, 506 r/w 34 of I.P.C.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioners stated that respondent No.2 filed a complaint against petitioner No.1 vide Crime No.54 of 2018 for the offences punishable under Sections 417 and 420 of I.P.C; that respondent No.2 filed another complaint against petitioner No.1 vide F.I.R.No.290 of 2019 dated 16.05.2019 for the offence under Section 354(D) of I.P.C.; that respondent No.2, by suppressing the earlier complaints filed the present complaint against petitioners for the afore said offences.

5. Learned counsel for the petitioners further submits that respondent No.2 is a complaint monger and filed the present complaint with false and baseless allegations, which amounts to double jeopardy. Therefore, he seeks to allow the Criminal Petition.

6. Learned Assistant Public Prosecutor and learned counsel for respondent No.2 contends that the matter requires full-fledged trial and seeks to dismiss the Criminal Petition.

7. Having regard to the submissions made by both the learned counsel, relying on the decision passed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Haji Iqbal alias Bala through S.P.O.A. Vs. State of U.P. and Others¹ and upon taking into consideration the overall circumstances that lead to the initiation/registration of the case as well as the materials collected in the course of investigation, this Court is of the view that multiple F.I.R.s registered over a period of time would evince wreaking out vengeance out of private or personal grudge between the parties. Moreover, the uncontroverted allegations made in the F.I.R. or complaint and the evidence collected in support of the same do not disclose the commission of any offence and make out a case against the

2023 SCC OnLine SC 946

petitioners/accused No.1 to 5. Therefore, this Court is inclined to quash the proceedings in so far as petitioners/accused No.1 to 5 are concerned in C.C.No.6641 of 2020 on the file of the learned II Additional Metropolitan Magistrate, Cyberabad, at L.B.Nagar.

8. Accordingly, the Criminal Petition is allowed.

Miscellaneous Petitions, pending if any, shall stand closed.

_____________________ E.V. VENUGOPAL, J Date: 09.04.2025

ESP

THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE E.V. VENUGOPAL

3223 CRIMINAL PETITION No.8530 OF 2023 Dated: 09.04.2025

ESP