VIR SINGH Vs. NIHAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a plaintiff's second appeal from the decree of the Civil Judge of Bijnor reversing that of the Munsif. Bijnor and thereby dismissing the suit for recovery of damages from the defendant respondents for malicious prosecution.

(2.) THE facts are these. THE plaintiff-appellant Vir Singh alleged that the defendants bore him ill-will as a result of several incidents which were mentioned in the plaint; that they were on the look out for an opportunity to do him harm, that they entered into a conspiracy in pursuance of which they persuaded the plaintiff to accompany them to the police station Noorpur by misrepresenting to him that the Station Officer wanted his presence in connection with some Panchayati document; that the plaintiff accompanied the defendants to the police station but was arrested and locked up immediately on his arrival there; that he was kept under custody for a few days and then prosecuted for the offence of being in possession of a revolver without licence; that he learnt that the prosecution was due to the defendants having filed a false report to the police that the plaintiff was illegally in possession of a revolver and cartridges; that the plaintiff was acquitted by the Magistrate who observed that he had been falsely implicated; that the police were entirely misled by the false allegations of the defendants who had filed a report maliciously and without reasonable and probable cause. THE plaintiff asked for damages which he assessed at Rs. 800.

(3.) ON appeal the learned Judge took the view that the plaintiff's omission to file a copy of the first information report filed by the defendants made it "impossible for the Court to say whether or not they had any reasonable or probable cause to make a report and whether or not the report was false" Holding that due to his omission to file this report the plaintiff had not discharged the burden of proving that the defendants had filed the report maliciously or without probable cause, the learned Judge allowed the appeal and dismissed the suit The plaintiff has come to this Court in second appeal.