SHREEMAD JAGADGURU SHANKARACHARYA, SHREE SHREE RAGHAVESHWARA BHARATI SWAMIJI (FORMERLY KNOWN AS SRI HARISH SHARMA), BANGALORE Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA & OTHERS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner moved this court seeking issue of Writ of Certiorari or any other appropriate writ or Order quashing all further proceedings and the FIR dated 28.8.2014 registered in Crime No. 164/2014, registered by Girinagar Police, (FIR in Crime No. 219/2014, registered earlier by Banashankari Police, transferred to Girinagar Police) and for such other reliefs as the court deem fit to grant under the circumstances of the case.

(2.) An interim prayer was also made by the petitioner seeking some protection from arrest during the pendency of the petition. The case came up before this Court on 8.9.20.14 and the Court heard the arguments of the learned Senior Counsel Sri B.V. Acharya and Sri. Narayana Reddy learned State Public Prosecutor and also Sri Shankarappa who has taken notice for the second respondent who have protested the granting of the interim prayer. On 9.9.2014, this Court considering the detailed arguments with regard to the interim prayer passed an order directing the investigating officers not to arrest and interrogate the petitioner till next date of hearing. Time to time, the said order has been extended by this Court. At the time of passing of the interim order, this Court has expressed that the entire materials were not placed before the Court. The FIR produced found to be incomplete and insufficient to draw any inference as to the allegations made in the FIR even broadly accepted, constitute any cognizable offence as argued by the learned counsel for the respondents. The court, therefore, directed the respondents to produce all the necessary materials before the Court and also to file the statement of objections, so that the Court can look into the entire materials on record and to pass appropriate order on merits of the case.

(3.) The pleadings of the parties are complete. It is the case of the petitioner that, The petitioner is the Pontiff of Shree Samsthana Gokarna-Shree Ramachandrapura Math, Hosanagar, Shimoga District. The said math is founded about a thousand three hundred years ago at Gokarna Kumta Taluk, Uttara Kannada District. The and the pontiff acquired large number of disciples, lot of name, fame and reputation.