KARTAR SINGH Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) On the death of Mrs. Gurmeet wife of Avtar Singh, a case under Section 302 Indian Penal Code . was registered at Police Station Gandhi Nagar, Delhi, and on completion of the investigation a charge-sheet for trial under the said provision of law was put up against Ranjit Kaur wife of Kartar Singh and mother-in-law of the deceased. Later on, Mohan Singh lodged a complaint in the Court of Metropolitan Magistrate Shahdara and attributed the murder of Gurmeet to Avtar Singh and Kartar Singh aforesaid, apart from Ranjit Kaur. This complaint was instituted on 9.5.1979 and on 19-5-1979 Magistrate committed Ranjit Kaur alone to the Court of Session. It was represented to Shri R. L.Chugh, Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Shahdara, with whom the complaint mentioned above was pending that in view of the dictates of Section 2100 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 the two persons other than Ranjit Kaur accused in the complaint be also committed to the Court of Session so that the police case and the complaint case can be tried together. The plea was, however, rejected by the Magistrate and it was directed that the complaint be enquired into in the manner prescribed by Chapter XV of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The complainant Mohan Singh filed a revision petition against this order and the Additional Sessions Judge concluded that Section 210(2) being applicable to the matter, the complaint case should have been treated as if the same had been instituted on a police report and committed together with the police case. Consequently he set aside the impugned order and remanded the complaint case for further proceedings according to law in the light of the observations made by him. On receipt of that order the Magistrate directed on 27.2.1980 issue of non-bailable warrants for the appearance of Avtar Singh and Kartar Singh. Aggrieved by this action, Kartar Singh and Avtar Singh have filed the revision petition under consideration for the order of the Additional Sessions Judge being set aside and the proceedings pending against them being quashed.

(2.) I may quote Section 210 of the Code of Criminal Procedure here for the ease of reference :

(3.) It is evident from the clear language of the aforesaid section that it comes into operation when the Magistrate is holding an inquiry or a trial in relation to a complaint case and it is brought to his notice that the offence which forms the subject-matter of that inquiry or trial is under investigation with the police. In such circumstances the Magistrate stays the proceedings in the complaint case and awaits the result of the investigation. If the police report does not relate to any person accused in the complaint case or if he does not take cognisance of any offence on the police report the inquiry or trial stayed by him gets going again in accordance with the provisions of the Code. On the other hand, if the Magistrate takes cognisance of any offence on the police report submitted in due course against any person who is accused in the complaint case also he has to inquire into or try the complaint and the police cases together and the procedure to be followed is that applicable to cases instituted on police report. In the matter before me the police had submitted a challan before Mohan Singh instituted his complaint and an essential condition of Section 210 being not thus satisfied there was no question of the complaint case being sent up by the Magistrate to the Court of Session for being amalgamated with the case intiated on the police report. The same view of the matter was taken by Prithvi Raj, J. in Satish Kumar v. State and others, (Criminal Misc. (Main) No. 582 of 1978, decided on 25.5.1979).