KULBIR CHAUHAN Vs. S.M.KATWAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner herein is an Assistant District Attorney in the Prosecution Department of Himachal Pradesh. He has challenged the order dated 10.6.2005 of his summoning by the learned trial court in Criminal Complaint No.37 -1 -04/ 22 -II -04 (RBT No.66 -II -05/04) as an accused for the offences punishable under Sections 447, 451, 380, 506 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code, on the grounds firstly, that no case is made out against him and secondly, for want of prosecution sanction, as contemplated under Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.

(2.) IN brief, the facts giving rise to the present case can be summed up thus. In March 2003, the respondent herein was the Chairman of Himachal Pradesh Subordinate Service Selection Board -, in short the ˜Board posted at Hamirpur. There were complaints of illegal recruitments made by the respondent in his capacity as a Chairman. With the change of new Government, an inquiry was initiated against him. A team of Enforcement department of the police headed by Sh. J.K. Gupta, DIG (Enforcement) was constituted by the Government. In addition, the petitioner being the Assistant District Attorney (Enforcement) was also deputed along with Shri Satish Thakur, and Shri Jawahar Sharma, District Attorneys for rendering legal assistance and they were required to report to Shri Jagjit Singh, DIG Camp at Hamirpur. In the early hours of the morning on 8.3.2009 office of the Board at Hamirpur was sealed by the Officers of Enforcement Department.

(3.) THE allegations of the respondent as contained in complaint against the petitioner herein are that he had visited the office of the respondent on 11.3.2003 when the respondent had returned from Amritsar after attending a marriage ceremony. There were some police Officers in Uniform and some were in civil and many on -lookers including persons from Press were found present. His office was found sealed and locked. He went to the room of his Secretary Ms. Rakhil Kahlon, where he found two persons present, one introduced himself as Superintendent of Police and other was the petitioner Assistant District Attorney. The accused -petitioner claimed himself to be the overall Officer of the Investigation Team and claimed that he would supervise the search and seizure operation. He also alleged that the respondent had recruited many non -Himachalis and his tone was threatening, annoying, insulting and offensive. His inclusion in the team was deliberate with a view to insult him. The respondent brought this fact to the notice of the DIG and other members of the Board, namely Shri Tashi Dawa. Later, his room was opened and the petitioner started rummaging through the drawers of his table without subjecting himself to any search. His behaviour was offensive. He visited every room of his office and started handling records, took it to the different rooms and on going through them, gave the instructions to the police personnels, showing that he was in command and overall incharge of the whole search and seizure operation. Thereafter, the said party including the petitioner went to his rented residence at Hira Nagar and unsealed his house and conducted the search operation in the presence of the two witnesses. The petitioner who was not subjected to search by him, he without any authority and sanction tress -passed into his residence, causing a great annoyance to him in the presence of DIG. A Goldsmith was also called with the Scale and weights. Many people including the Press had gathered there. The medical record of the respondent was also found missing, which according to the respondent might have been stolen by the petitioner -accused. It was alleged that similar things happened at Una while conducting search of the house of his wife and the attitude of the petitioner remained unchanged.