JASWANT AND ANOTHER Vs. STATE AND ANOTHER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Smt. Jaswant and her husband Nihal Singh petitioners have made this application under Section 561-A, Criminal Procedure Code, for the quashing of proceedings against them under Sections 107/151 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

(2.) It is stated in the petition that Nihal Singh petitioner an employee of the Police department and was previously posted at Jind, district Sangrur, but in the month of August, 1965 he was transferred to Patiala and since then he is living there with other members of his family including his wife Jaswant petitioner. While posted at Jind, Nihal Singh was assaulted by the sons of one Avtar Singh who is very influential person of that place and for which a case under Sections 452 and 323 of the Penal Code was pending against them in the Court of a Judicial Magistrate at Jind. It was alleged in the petition that in order to put pressure on Nihal Singh to withdraw that case, Avtar Singh got a false complaint filed against the petitioners under Sections 107/151 of the Criminal Procedure Code. It is further stated that the above complaint was made by Smt. Ram Piari respondent and the allegations made therein was that on account of the price of a gandasa there was some quarrel between Ram Piari and the petitioners on 11th July, 1965, and that on account of that quarrel Ram Piari respondent apprehended breach of peace at the hands of the petitioners. On that complaint, S.D.M. Jind summoned the petitioners under Sections 107/151 of the Criminal Procedure Code and that since then the said case was pending in that Court and was adjourned on various occasions for one reason or the other and till the presentation of this petition (1st February, 1966) no proceedings had been taken in that case. The proceedings, according to the petitioners, were initiated to harass them and they were apprehending all sorts of trouble at Jind. Apprehending of not having a fair trial in the Court of the S.D.M. Jind, they moved an application (Cr. M. 4/1966) for the transfer of the said proceedings from the Court of the S.D.M. outside the district of Sangrur. The petitioners went on to say that since August, 1965 petitioner No. 2, Nihal Singh, had been transferred to Patiala and none of the petitioners was at Jind and, therefore, there was no occasion for them to cause any breach of peace of Jind and, further, a single incident of the type mentioned in the complaint against them culminating in the proceedings under Sections 107/151 of the Criminal Procedure Code could not be made the basis of the said complaint and it was nothing but an abuse of the process of law. It was then prayed that the said proceedings be quashed.

(3.) Notice was given to the opposite party but no one has come forward to contest the same although served.