RAYSINGBHAI KANJIBHAI GAMIT Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners - original accused have approached this Court by way of present petition for seeking quashing and setting aside the complaint being FIR No.I-C.R.No.131 of 2007 lodged before the Vyara Police Station for the offence punishable under Sections 452, 447, 504, 506(2) and 114 of the Indian Penal Code and also the proceedings of Criminal Case No.2494 of 2007 pending before the JMFC,Vyara.

(2.) The case of the petitioners is that petitioners belonged to tribal community of District Tapi and are marginal farmers and labourers. The petitioner No.1 is running a tailoring shop in the name of King Master Tailor at J.P.Shopping Center. Said Shop No.15 is constructed and administered by Vyara Nagarpalika. The respondent No.3, who is the original complainant, is also having two shops at the very same J.P.Shopping Center and carrying on business in the name of Welcome Garment and the original complaint is dealing in the business of readymade garment. Somewhere around in the year 1994-95, Vyara Nagarpalika had allotted Shop No.15 to the petitioner No.1 and since then, petitioner No.1 is in possession of the said shop. The said shop is also recorded and registered with Vyara Nagarpalika under the Shops and Establishments Act,2006.

(3.) It is also the case of the petitioners that on 16.9.2004, respondent No.3 entered into an agreement to sell with the petitioner No.1 and in respect of that agreement, the petitioner No.1 had also filed a Regular Civil Suit No.107 of 2007 on 24.10.2007. Despite the aforesaid circumstance, respondent No.3 had filed the criminal complaint with Vyara Police Station being I-C.R.No.131 of 2007 on 25.10.2007 immediately after the date of filing of the suit. It is the case of the petitioners that this criminal complaint came to be filed with a view to frustrate the civil proceedings which came to be generated by the petitioners in the form of Regular Civil Suit as referred to above and therefore, by contending that petitioners have submitted that this amounts to abuse of process of law. Therefore, the complaint in question deserves to be quashed. It was also pointed out in the petition by the petitioners that in the Regular Civil Suit referred to above, an injunction application below Exh.5 came to be allowed vide order dated 27.5.2008 whereby, the civil Court directed respondent No.3 not to enter the shop of petitioner No.1, namely, Shop No.15 situated at J.P.Shopping Center, Vyara. It is the case of the petitioners that In-charge Police Inspector, Vyara Police Station, Vyara, at the instance of original complainant i.e. present respondent No.3, has registered the complaint against the petitioners and carried out the investigation and filed the charge-sheet in the Court of learned JMFC,Vyara on 28.11.2007 and then, a criminal case has been registered before the trial Court bearing Criminal Case No.2494 of 2007. By submitting this, a case is put up by the petitioners before this Court in the petition that filing of the complaint by respondent No.3 is nothing but a step in the direction of abusing the process of law and therefore, requested to invoke the jurisdiction of this Court under Section 482 of the Cr. P.C.