NITESH SHARMA Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners have sought for quashing of FIR No. 267/2022 registered with Ashok Nagar Police Station, Jaipur City (South), Jaipur for offence under Sec. 354 IPC at the behest of respondent No.2.

(2.) The FIR has been challenged on the ground that just to pressurize in the civil dispute, the criminal proceedings have been abused for malicious and ulterior motive to wreak vengeance on the petitioners.

(3.) Undisputed background of the case is that M/s Prem and Company, a partnership firm entered into a business agreement with M/s Sharda Infrastructure Developers on 1/8/2019. Husband of respondent No.2 signed the agreement as authorised agent of his father Shri Chander Prakash Sharma who was one of the partner of M/s Prem &Company. Petitioner No.1 Nitesh Sharma signed the agreement as sole proprietor of M/s Sharda Infrastructure Developers. Petitioner No.2 is an employee of Sharda Infrastructure Developers. Some business dispute arose between the parties and M/s Prem and Company served a notice on the petitioners' company on 25/8/2021 terminating the agreement aforesaid by following term No. 9.2. It was alleged that M/s Sharda Infrastructure Developers had committed material breach of the provision of the agreement. Soon thereafter both the parties to the agreement approached the Court under Sec. 9 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 for interim relief of injunction. By order dtd. 27/4/2022, the learned Commercial Court dismissed both the petitions, however observed, on the basis of material on record, that lock and key of Shikha Hotel with respondent Sharda Infrastructure goes to show that respondent (Sharda Infrastructure Developers) is in actual possession of the hotel and not the applicant (M/s. Prem and Company), as such there was no prima facie case in favour of applicant for grant of injunction. In the concluding paragraph, the Commercial Court recorded as follows: