GAJRA GEARS LTD Vs. ASHADEVI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this petition under Section 482 of the Criminal Procedure Code, the petitioner, a public limited company, seeks quashment of the order dated February 28, 1996, passed by the Sessions Judge, Dewas, in Cr. Rev. No. 9 of 1996, in affirmance of the order dated October 20, 1995, passed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Dewas, dismissing the petitioner's complaint against the respondent under section 630 of the Companies Act, 1956 (for short "the Act" ).

(2.) THE respondent, Smt. Ashadevi is the widow of the late Shri Ram Pravesh Singh who was an employee of the petitioner-company and died while serving with the company. The petitioner-company filed a complaint before the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Dewas, against the respondent alleging commission of the offence under section 630 of the Act and it was averred that the respondent has after the death of her husband, failed to hand over vacant possession of the premises allotted by the company to her husband.

(3.) THE learned Chief Judicial Magistrate has dismissed the complaint holding that section 630 of the Act does not contemplate criminal proceedings being launched against the relatives of any erstwhile employee/officer of the company for recovering possession of the property of the company. The order of the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, was affirmed in revision by the Sessions Court who also took the same view. Reliance has been placed on a decision of this court in Beharilal v. Binod Mills Co. Ltd. [1987] Bank J 621 ; [1987] 3 Comp LJ 246 (MP ).