ARUN KUMAR BHAGAVA Vs. STATE OF MP

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner is the head of the Department of Personnel Management in a public limited company, namely, C.G. Elin Power System Ltd. Initially the case against the petitioner was that on 10.9.99 two motor vehicles were requisitioned from him for the purpose of election of Loksabha. As per the allegation, he did not comply with the order and for this reason initially a charge sheet was filed against the petitioner by the police under section 186 IPC and sections 134 and 167 of the Representation of the People Act (for short 'the Act'). At that time the case was pending in the Court of JMFC. Goharganj. District Raisen was registered as RT No. 22/2000. This Court by order dated 4.7.2000 held that the charge sheet filed by the police under section 186 IPC and under section 134 of the Act was liable to be quashed for the reason prima facie no offence was made out. However, this Court held that so far as offence under section 167 of the Act is concerned, the charge was made out prima facie. The offence punishable under section 167 of the Act shall continue against the petitioner.

(2.) THE petitioner thereafter raised a legal objection to the effect that the police had no powers to file a charge sheet against the applicant as the offence was non cognizable. The trial Court by the impugned order dated passed in criminal case No. 22/2000 has rejected that contention.

(3.) LEARNED counsel for the State. On the other hand points out that as per Explanation to section 2(d) of the Code of Criminal Procedure a report made by a police officer in a case which discloses, after investigation, the commission of a non cognizable offence shall be deemed to be a complaint : and the Police Officer by whom such report is made shall be deemed to be the complainant within the meaning of section 2(d) of the CrPC and therefore the report made by the police officer should be treated as a complaint. It has been further argued that under section 155 (4) of the CrPC it has been provided that where a case relates to two or more offences of which at least one is congnizable, the case shall be deemed to be a cognizable case, notwithstanding that the other offences are non cognizable. It has been further argued that initially when the charge sheet was filed, an offence punishable under section 167 of the Act was deemed to be cognizable and consequently this Court should treat the police report as a complaint. This argument was accepted by the learned Court below.