QAMARUDDIN SHEIKH Vs. NAZIR AHMAD BHAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) COMPLAINT titled as Nazir Ahmad Bhat Vs. Qamaruddin Sheikh came to be filed before the court of Judicial Magistrate 1st Class, Sumbal, for the commission of offence punishable under Section 138 read with Section 142 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, on the grounds taken in the complaint.

(2.) PRELIMINARY statements of complainant, namely, Nazir Ahmad Bhat and witness Fayaz Ahmad Reshi came to be recorded. After going through the complaint and preliminary statements cognizance came to be drawn and process came to be issued against the petitioner -accused. He caused appearance before the trial court till 12th October, 2006. In the meantime on 15th September, 2006 he filed this petition under Section 561 -A of Criminal Procedure Code on the grounds taken in the petition.

(3.) LEARNED counsel for petitioner argued that complaint came to be signed and filed by the learned counsel for complainant. Thus, the complaint is not maintainable and is abuse of the process of law. The argument of learned counsel for the petitioner is devoid of any force for the following reasons: Whether the complaint is signed by complainant himself or by his counsel is immaterial for the reasons that Section 190 of the Criminal Procedure Code, for short Code, provides that First Class Judicial Magistrate can draw cognizance upon information received from any person or upon his own knowledge or even on suspicion that offence has been committed. It is profitable to reproduce Section 190 of Criminal Procedure Code herein, which reads as under: - - "190.Cognizance of offence by Magistrates. - -(1) Except as hereinafter provided, [any Chief Judicial Magistrate and any other Judicial Magistrate] specially empowered in this behalf, may take cognizance of any offence - - (a) upon receiving a complaint of facts which constitute such offence; (b) upon a report in writing of such facts made by any police officer; (c) upon information received from any person other than a police officer, or upon his own knowledge or suspicion, that such offence has been committed."