JAMIAT SINGH Vs. STATE OF PUNJAB

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE prayer made in this petition filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (for short "the Code") is for quashing FIR No. 132 dated August 6, 2005 registered under Sections 420 IPC at Police Station, Hariana District Hoshiarpur and subsequent proceedings arising therefrom.

(2.) AT the very outset, learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the same set of allegations were made against the petitioner as well as his wife Harpreet Kaur in the FIR in question and in Criminal Misc. No. 44335-M of 2005 (Harpreet Kaur v. State of Punjab and another, 2006(2) RCR(Criminal) 287) filed by wife of petitioner Harpreet Kaur, this Court vide order dated March 1, 2006 had already quashed the FIR.

(3.) LEARNED counsel for the petitioner submitted that as far as allegations against the petitioner are concerned, the same do not constitute an offence under Section 420 IPC under which the FIR was registered against him. Petitioner owned 103 kanals 16 marlas of land out of the total land measuring 120 kanals 16 marlas for which he had admittedly executed sale deed in favour of the complainant. This single fact is enough to conclude that intention of the petitioner was not to cheat the complainant. As far as balance land is concerned, the submission is that a suit for specific performance filed by respondent No. 2 is already pending. As regards the mortgage of the land is concerned, it is submitted that the same was done by the wife of the petitioner, who had become the owner of the land owned by her son Lakhbir Singh by way of inheritance and only thereafter it was mortgaged with the bank to raise a loan. However, before the FIR was registered taking such plea, even the loan had been settled on May 6, 2005.