ZABEDHA AKHTER Vs. STATE OF J & K

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This quashment petition is directed against an FIR No. 0225 dated 26.04.2019 registered in the Police Station, Rajouri for the offences under Sections 409/411/34 RPC and under Section 3 of the Essential Commodities Act, 1955 against the petitioners. The petitioners also seek a direction to the respondent No.2 to constitute a Special Investigating Team (SIT) to investigate the aforementioned FIR freely and fairly.

(2.) The impugned FIR is challenged by the petitioner primarily on the ground that the allegations made in the FIR, even if they are taken at their face value and accepted in their entirety do not prima-facie constitute any offence warranting registration of FIR and that the allegations made in the FIR are so absurd and inherently improbable that it is not justifiable to infer that there is sufficient ground for proceedings against the petitioners. It is also urged that the impugned FIR has been malicious instituted with an ulterior motive for wreaking vengeance on the petitioners. The petitioners has placed strong reliance upon the judgment of State of Haryana and others V. Ch. Bhajan Lal and others, reported in 1992 AIR 604.

(3.) For better appreciation of the grounds of challenge urged by the learned counsel for the petitioners, it would be appropriate to briefly refer to few facts, which have led to the registration of the impugned FIR. The petitioner No.1 is an Anganwari Worker working in Anganwari Centre located in Ward No.1, Mehari Gujjrain, Tehsil and District Rajouri. The petitioner No.2 is a Shopkeeper having his shop in village Dasangali and the petitioner No.3 is a relative of petitioner No.2. As per the allegations in the FIR on 16.04.2019, the Police Station concerned received an information from reliable source that the petitioner No.1, who is working as Anganwari Worker in Aganwari Centre, Ward No.1, Mehari Gujjrain, Tehsil and District Rajouri in connivance with the CDPO, Rajouri has been misappropriating the nutritional items supplied to her for their use and distribution in the Anganwari Centre and selling the same to the Shopkeepers of the area. A specific information was received by the Police that on the said day also the petitioner No.1 after getting the nutrition items released from the office of CDPO, Rajouri has instead of carrying it to the Anganwari Centre has sold it to the respondent No.2, a shopkeeper having his shop enroute situated at Dasangali and has, thus, misappropriated the property. On the basis of this information, the Police registered the impugned FIR and set the investigation in motion. As is evident from the FIR, the Police has found prima-facie commission of cognizable offences under Sections 409/411/34 RPC and 3 of the Essential Commodities Act.