SABINE BAECHLER Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners in all these cases are accused 1 to 12 in Crime No.278 of 2022 registered pursuant to a private complaint filed by the complainant/2nd respondent, for offences punishable under Ss. 354(A), 107, 500, 506, 120B and 34 of the IPC. The complainant is the same. Therefore, all these petitions are taken up together and considered by this common order.

(2.) Shorn of unnecessary details, facts in brief germane, are as follows:- Before embarking upon noticing the facts, I deem it appropriate to notice respective petitions filed by the accused. Criminal Petition No.4476 of 2023 is preferred by accused No.4; Criminal Petition No.662 of 2023 by accused No.1; Criminal Petition No.743 of 2023 by accused No.3; Criminal Petition No.1317 of 2023 by accused Nos.5, 6, 8, 9 and 12; Criminal Petition No.1320 of 2023 by accused Nos. 10 and 11; Criminal Petition No.3289 of 2023 by accused No.7; Criminal Petition No.4646 of 2023 by accused No.2, The conglomeration of these cases are by all the accused in a particular crime viz., Crime No.278 of 2022.

(3.) The backdrop of registration of crime, is that the petitioner in Criminal Petition No.4476 of 2023 is the Director and Head of Controlling and Reporting P & C EMEA at Swiss Reinsurance Company Limited, Zurich ('the Company' for short) having its office at Zurich Switzerland. The petitioner has been associated with the said Company for over 18 years now. It is averred that it is one of the world's leading provider of insurance, re-insurance or insurance based risk transfer and has its presence across the world and headquartered at Zurich. The complainant is an employee in one of the units of the Company i.e., 'Transition Accounting Services team'. She was its Vice-President having entered the team on 18/5/2017. In the course of normal functioning of the complainant, accused Nos.7 and 10 raised certain complaints against the style of functioning of the complainant, alleging violations of code of conduct and quoting instances of such violations which reached up to the powers that be in the Company. This results in a show cause notice being issued to the complainant for allegations of fraud, forging of documents and un-professional conduct in the discharge of her duties. On 1/4/2019 the complainant replies to the show cause notice. The reply not being acceptable, results in termination of the services of the complainant on 24/4/2019 on the afore-quoted allegations. Again a reply was submitted by the complainant on 26/4/2019 to the termination letter, though it was a letter of termination and not a notice of termination, alleging that the committee failed to provide specific details of allegations against the complainant, which was in violation of the principles of natural justice, it was also contended that she was not accepting the termination letter and sought copies of several documents. On 8/5/2019 a senior Vice-president replied to the allegation of the complainant rejecting the reply and indicating that they had followed all the Rules and procedures and the termination was not in violation of law. She was given the entire settlement package by certain e-mail communications.