RAHUL JAIN Vs. STATE OF CHHATTISGARH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The instant petition under Section 482 of CrPC is directed against the impugned order dated 23/10/2013 passed by learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, Durg rejecting petitioners' application under Section 177 of CrPC and for quashing the criminal proceeding registered against the petitioners for offence punishable under Sections 498A and 324 read with Section 34 of the IPC and Section 4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 on the ground that the offences have been alleged to have been committed at Kamla Nagar Bhopal i.e. at the matrimonial house and the Durg Court has no jurisdiction to entertain the chargesheet.

(2.) Mr. V.G. Tamaskar, learned counsel for the petitioners, would submit that all offences alleged to have been committed by the petitioners are at Kamla Nagar Bhopal and the Judicial Magistrate First Class, Durg has no jurisdiction to take cognizance of the aforesaid offences and two applications filed under Section 177 of CrPC have illegally been rejected. Even otherwise, no offence as aforesaid is made out against the petitioners, as such, entire charge sheet and order passed on the application under Section 177 of the CrPC deserves to be quashed. He would rely upon the judgments of the Supreme Court in the matters of Y. Abraham Ajit and Others Vs. Inspector of Police, Chennai, 2004 4 SCC 100 and Preeti Gupta and Another Vs. State or Jharkhand, 2010 AIR(SC) 3363.

(3.) Mr. Animesh Tiwari, learned State counsel and Mrs. Aditi Singhvi, learned counsel for respondent No. 2/complainant, would support the impugned order and would submit that in view of the decision rendered by the Supreme Court in the matter of Rupali Devi V. State of U.P. , 2019 5 SCC 384 which has been followed by this Court in the matter of Smt. Preeti Sharma v. State of Chhattisgarh, WPCR No. 430/2020 decided on 23/11/2020 , it cannot be held that only the Court at Bhopal has the jurisdiction for prosecution of aforesaid offences against the petitioners, as such, the instant petition deserves to be dismissed.