SURINDER SINGH VAID Vs. UNION T ERRITORY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) PETITIONERS , who are officials/officers (now retired) of the Punjab State Cooperative Bank Limited (in short 'the Bank'), Sector -34, Chandigarh, have filed this petition for quashing of FIR No. 122 dated 29.4.1997, registered under Sections 342 and 353 IPC at Police Station Central, U.T. Chandigarh (Annexure -P -6). They have also sought the quashing of the summoning order dated 13.8.2009 (Annexure -P -12), passed by the learned Judicial Magistrate 1st Class, Chandigarh.

(2.) A combined reading of the FIR in question as well as the application (Annexures -P -6 and P -7 respectively) shows that Ram Lal, Bailliff in the District Courts, Chandigarh, was entrusted with the execution of warrants of possession against the Punjab State Cooperative Bank Limited, SCOs No. 2421 -22, Sector -22 -C, Chandigarh (Judgment Debtor). It comes out that the said Bailliff accompanied by Baldev Krishan (Decree Holder) and some other persons visited the premises of JD Bank for executing the warrants of possession. Surinder Singh Vaid, Manager of the said Bank, told the said Bailliff to contact his Managing Director (MD). Thereafter, the said Bailliff went to the office of the M.D. of the said Bank, where the M.D. of the said Bank did not meet him, rather his P.A. told him that there are stay orders from the Court. The said Bailliff came back to the premises of JD Bank. Shri Jagdeep Suri, Senior Accountant, after verification from his lawyer, came at 3:15 PM and told the said Bailliff and the decree holder that they do not have any stay order at present, but they would have obtain the same from the High Court on 23.4.1997. W hen the said Bailliff tried to deliver the possession, the accused resisted the same and stated that they will not allow delivery of the possession. The employees of the JD Bank raised slogans in loud voice against the decision of the Court. Ram Lal, Bailliff alongwith the decree holder Baldev Krishan were locked inside the Bank and they were told that if they tried to get the bank vacated, then there would be blood shed. Bhag Singh, the guard of the Bank stood in front of the main gate alongwith his gun and said that he is bound by the orders of his officers and he would fire the gun if the need arises. The said Bailliff and the decree holder were not allowed to come out from the Bank by the officers/officials and they were kept confined inside the Bank. Then, at about 5:00 PM, the Bailliff and the decree holder were allowed to come out of the Bank only after they made repeated requests for the same.

(3.) LEARNED senior counsel for the petitioners has vehemently argued that in this case, the petitioners are the employees of the said Bank. They had no personal interest. Infact, the ejectment of the Bank was ordered by the lower Court as well as by the appellate Court and that the said Bank had moved to the High Court in Regular Second Appeal i.e. RSA No. 1079 of 1997. It is stated that the stay order was granted on 23.4.1997 (Annexure -P -3). The present occurrence is stated to be of 21.4.1997. It is conceded that on the day of occurrence, there was no stay order. It was argued that the petitioner had earlier filed CRM No. 19519 -M of 1997, in which this Court, vide order dated 14.11.2002 (Annexure -P - 10), had dismissed the petition as not pressed with a direction to the Senior Superintendent of Police to consider the representation/application dated 3.5.1997, filed by the Manager, Punjab State Cooperative Bank, Sector -22 -C, Chandigarh and decide the same after holding such inquiry as he may deem necessary under the circumstances of the case. It is stated that in pursuance of the said order, an inquiry was held and Report dated 21.4.2003 (Annexure -P -11) was prepared, in which the cancellation report was recommended. It is further stated that when the cancellation report was submitted, the same was opposed by the complainant Bailliff saying that he is not satisfied with the report and prayed for further investigation. Thereafter, the learned Magistrate passed the summoning order dated 13.8.2009. The relevant extract from the same is reproduced below : -