SUKUMARAN Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Can a non-legal heir of a complainant in a complaint case be permitted to continue the prosecution on the death of the complainant when his legal heirs are alive and have not come forward to prosecute the case? - This is the interesting question involved in this criminal revision petition.

(2.) The revision petitioners are the accused in C.C.No.787 of 2011 on the files of the Judicial First-Class Magistrate Court-I, Attingal (for short, 'the trial court'). The said case arose out of a protest complaint filed by the deceased brother of the respondent No.2, namely Sri.Sudarsanan. The offences alleged are punishable under Ss. 395, 465, 467, 468, 471 r/w Sec. 34 of IPC.

(3.) Originally, the brother of the respondent No.2 filed a private complaint as Crl.M.P. No. 5151 of 2009 before the trial court against the petitioners. The trial court forwarded the said complaint to the Chirayinkeezhu Police under Sec. 156(3) of Cr.P.C. The police registered the crime as Crime No.48 of 2010. After investigation, the police filed a negative final report and referred the case on 20/1/2010. The complainant filed a protest complaint before the trial court. The trial court received the complaint on file, numbered it as C.C.No.787 of 2011, took cognizance of the offences and issued process to the petitioners. The petitioners appeared before the trial court. During the pendency of the proceedings before the trial court, the complainant died on 14/2/2019. Thereafter, the respondent No.2 herein, who is the sister of the deceased complainant, filed a petition as C.M.P.No.1512 of 2019 invoking Sec. 302 of Cr.P.C. to prosecute the case. The revision petitioners objected to the said petition mainly on the ground that the daughter of the complainant is alive and hence his sister has no locus standi to file a petition to prosecute the case. The trial court overruled the said objection and allowed the petition as per the order dtd. 14/1/2020. This revision petition has been filed by the petitioners challenging the said order.