CRL.MC Nos. 7430 and 7441 of 2023, High Court of Kerala at Ernakulam

Case Details & Bench

Court: High Court of Kerala
Hon'ble Judges: Gopinath P.
Judgment Date: 2023-10-03
Court Decision / Holding: The petitions are allowed and all further proceedings in CC No. 766 of 2022 before the Judicial First Class Magistrate, Muvattupuzha, in respect of the petitioners in Crl.M.C. No. 7430 of 2023, and all further proceedings in CC No. 881 of 2022 before the same Court, in respect of the petitioner in Crl.M.C. No. 7441 of 2023, stand quashed.
Final Disposition: Quashed

Parties to the Case

Appellants / Petitioners

Ann Sara Rajesh
Rajesh Mathew
Lissy Iypu

Respondents

State of Kerala
The Station House Officer, Muvattupuzha Police Station
Ann Sara Rajesh
Lissy Iypu

Legal Representation & Advocates

Counsels for Petitioners

• Adv. R. Nikhil
• Mathew Abraham (Kottayam)
• Sajna Jaleel

Counsels for Respondents

• Public Prosecutor
• Sri. Vipin Narayan, Sr. PP

Case Synopsis & Summary

This is a consolidated criminal miscellaneous petition before the Kerala High Court (Single Judge) involving two accused-petitioners: Ann Sara Rajesh and Rajesh Mathew (Crl.M.C. No. 7430 of 2023) and Lissy Iypu (Crl.M.C. No. 7441 of 2023). The petitions arise from two criminal cases pending in the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-I, Muvattupuzha: Crime No. 1193 of 2022 (C.C. No. 766 of 2022) and Crime No. 1201 of 2022 (C.C. No. 881 of 2022), under IPC sections 324, 341, 448 and 34 for the first case, and sections 341, 294(b) and 323 for the second. The petitioners contend that the disputes between the parties have been settled and that they no longer wish to prosecute; affidavits of the de facto complainants are placed on record. The State and the de facto complainants support withdrawal of prosecution. Relying on Gian Singh v. State of Punjab (2012) 10 SCC 303 and State of MP v. Laxmi Narayan (2019) 5 SCC 688, the court holds that where a genuine settlement exists and no public interest is served by continuation, the proceedings may be quashed. Accordingly, both petitions are allowed and all further proceedings in CC 766/2022 and CC 881/2022 are quashed against the petitioners.

Provisions of Law Cited

IPC Section 324IPC Section 341IPC Section 448IPC Section 34IPC Section 294(b)IPC Section 323

Legal Doctrines & Maxims

Gian Singh v. State of Punjab; (2012) 10 SCC 303
State of MP v. Laxmi Narayan; (2019) 5 SCC 688

Submissions & Arguments

Contentions of Appellants / Petitioners

The petitioners submit that all disputes with the de facto complainants have been settled and the parties do not wish to pursue the prosecutions; affidavits to this effect are placed on record; reliance is placed on Gian Singh and Laxmi Narayan to justify quashing in the interests of justice and public interest not being served by continued prosecution.

Contentions of Respondents

The respondents (State and de facto complainants) state that they do not wish to continue the prosecutions; they support withdrawal in light of the settlement and affidavits, and leave the matter to the Court to determine on the basis of the law on settlement in criminal cases.

Cited Precedents (2)

Case Name	Citation	Treatment	Explanation
Gian Singh v. State of Punjab	(2012) 10 SCC 303	Positive	Cited as authority to permit quashing of criminal proceedings on the basis of a settlement between the parties.
State of MP v. Laxmi Narayan	(2019) 5 SCC 688	Positive	Cited to reinforce the principle that settlement can justify quashing where no public interest requires continuation.

Extracted Judgment Text

Exact text extracted from official judgment records.

# **`IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM`** ## **`PRESENT`** ``` THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE GOPINATH P. ``` ``` TUESDAY, THE 3[RD] DAY OF OCTOBER 2023 / 11TH ASWINA, 1945 ``` ``` CRL.MC NO. 7430 OF 2023 ``` ``` CRIME NO.1193/2022 OF Muvattupuzha Police Station, Ernakulam CC 766/2022 OF JUDICIAL MAGISTRATE OF FIRST CLASS -I, MUVATTUPUZHA PETITIONERS/ACCUSED 1 & 2 : ``` ``` 1ANN SARA RAJESH AGED 22 YEARS D/O. RAJESH MATHEW, RESIDING AT PARUVELIKUDIYIL HOUSE, NEAR KARANATTU KAVU, RAKKAD KARA, MEKKADAMPU P.O, VALAKOM, MUVATTUPUZHA, ERNAKULAM DISTRICT, PIN - 682316 2RAJESH MATHEW AGED 50 YEARS S/O. MATHEW P.P, RESIDING AT PARUVELIKUDIYIL HOUSE, NEAR KARANATTU KAVU, RAKKAD KARA, MEKKADAMPU P.O, VALAKOM, MUVATTUPUZHA, ERNAKULAM DISTRICT, PIN - 682316 BY ADV R.NIKHIL ``` ## **`RESPONDENTS/STATE & DE-FACTO COMPLAINANT :`** ``` 1STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KERALA, ERNAKULAM, PIN - 682031 2THE STATION HOUSE OFFICER, MUVATTUPUZHA POLICE STATION ERNAKULAM DISTRICT REPRESENTED BY THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KERALA, ERNAKULAM, PIN - 682031 ``` Crl.MC Nos.7430 and 7441 of 2023 2 ``` 3LISSY IYPU AGED 64 YEARS W/O. IYPU, RESIDING AT PARUVELIKUDIYIL HOUSE, MEKKADAMPU KARA, MEKKADAMPU P.O, VALAKOM, MUVATTUPUZHA, ERNAKULAM DISTRICT, PIN – 682316 BY SRI.NOUSHAD K.A., SR.PP ``` ``` THIS CRIMINAL MISC. CASE HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 03.10.2023, ALONG WITH Crl.MC.7441/2023, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING: ``` Crl.MC Nos.7430 and 7441 of 2023 3 # **`IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM`** # **`PRESENT`** ``` THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE GOPINATH P. ``` ``` TUESDAY, THE 3[RD] DAY OF OCTOBER 2023 / 11TH ASWINA, 1945 CRL.MC NO. 7441 OF 2023 ``` ``` CRIME NO.1201/2022 OF Muvattupuzha Police Station, Ernakulam CC 881/2022 OF JUDICIAL MAGISTRATE OF FIRST CLASS -I ``` ## **`MUVATTUPUZHA`** ## **`PETITIONER/ACCUSED:`** ``` LISSY IYPU AGED 64 YEARS, W/O. IYPU, RESIDING AT PARUVELIKUDIYIL HOUSE, MEKKADAMPU KARA, MEKKADAMPU P.O, VALAKOM, MUVATTUPUZHA, ERNAKULAM DISTRICT, PIN - 682316 BY ADVS. MATHEW ABRAHAM (KOTTAYAM) SAJNA JALEEL ``` ## **`RESPONDENTS/STATE & DE-FACTO COMPLAINANT :`** ``` 1STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KERALA, PIN - 682031 2THE STATION HOUSE OFFICER, MUVATTUPUZHA POLICE STATION, ERNAKULAM DISTRICT REPRESENTED BY THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF KERALA, ERNAKULAM, PIN - 682031 3ANN SARA RAJESH AGED 22 YEARS D/O. RAJESH MATHEW, RESIDING AT PARUVELIKUDIYIL HOUSE, NEAR KARANATTU KAVU, ``` Crl.MC Nos.7430 and 7441 of 2023 4 ``` RAKKAD KARA, MEKKADAMPU P.O, VALAKOM, MUVATTUPUZHA, ERNAKULAM DISTRICT, PIN – 682316 BY SRI.VIPIN NARAYAN, SR.PP ``` ``` THIS CRIMINAL MISC. CASE HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 03.10.2023, ALONG WITH Crl.MC.7430/2023, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY PASSED THE FOLLOWING: ``` Crl.MC Nos.7430 and 7441 of 2023 5 ## **O R D E R** The petitioners in Crl.M.C.No.7430 of 2023 are the accused in Crime No.1193 of 2022 of Muvattupuzha Police Station, Ernakulam, alleging commission of offences under Sections 324, 341, 448 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code. The petitioner in Crl.M.C.No.7441 of 2023 is the accused in Crime No.1201 of 2022 of Muvattupuzha Police Station, Ernakulam, alleging commission of offences under Sections 341, 294(b) and 323 of the Indian Penal Code. Crime No.1193 of 2022 is now pending as C.C.No.766 of 2022 on the files of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-I, Muvattupuzha, while Crime No.1201 of 2022 is now pending as C.C.No.881 of 2022 before the same Court. 2. The learned counsel appearing for the petitioners in theses cases would submit that the petitioner in Crl.M.C.No.7441 of 2023 was the defacto complainant in Crime No.1193 of 2022, while the first petitioner in Crl.M.C.No.7430 of 2023 was the defacto complainant in Crime No.1201 of 2022. It is submitted that all disputes between the parties have been Crl.MC Nos.7430 and 7441 of 2023 6 settled and they do not wish to continue with the prosecution against each other in any manner. Affidavits of the defacto complainants have been placed separately in both the cases. 3. The learned Public Prosecutor and the learned counsel appearing for the defacto complainants in the respective cases would state that the defacto complainants do not wish to continue with the prosecution of their respective cases. 4. Having heard the learned counsel appearing for the respective parties and the learned Public Prosecutor, and keeping in mind the law laid down by the Supreme Court in _**Gian Singh v. State of Punjab;** (2012) 10 SCC 303_ and _**State of M.P. v. Laxmi Narayan**_ ; _(2019) 5 SCC 688_ , I am of the view that the proceedings against the petitioners in both these cases can be quashed on the ground of settlement. No public purpose would be served by continuing with the proceedings against the petitioners in these petitions. The chance of a successful prosecution are also minimal in the light of the settlement arrived at between the parties. In the result, both these petitions are allowed and all further proceedings in C.C.No.766 of 2022 on the files of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-I, Muvattupuzha will stand quashed against the petitioners in Crl.M.C.No.7430 of 2023 and Crl.MC Nos.7430 and 7441 of 2023 7 all further proceedings in C.C.No.881 of 2022 on the files of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court-I, Muvattupuzha will stand quashed against the petitioner in Crl.M.C.No.7441 of 2023. Sd/- **GOPINATH P., JUDGE** rkj Crl.MC Nos.7430 and 7441 of 2023 8 ## **`APPENDIX OF CRL.MC 7430/2023`** ``` PETITIONER ANNEXURES ``` ``` Annexure A1A CERTIFIED COPY OF THE FINAL REPORT IN CRIME NO.1193/2022 OF MUVATTUPUZHA POLICE STATION, ERNAKULAM DISTRICT Annexure A2A TRUE COPY OF THE DEATH CERTIFICATE BEARING NO:D0020195-2212082 DATED 08.12.2022 ISSUED BY MUVATTUPUZHA MUNICIPALITY Annexure A3AFFIDAVIT DATED 11.09.2023 SWORN IN BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT ``` Crl.MC Nos.7430 and 7441 of 2023 9 ## **`APPENDIX OF CRL.MC 7441/2023`** ``` PETITIONER ANNEXURES Annexure A1A CERTIFIED COPY OF THE FINAL REPORT IN CRIME NO.1201/2022 DATED 23.08.2022 OF MUVATTUPUZHA POLICE STATION, ERNAKULAM Annexure A2AFFIDAVIT DATED 11.09.2023 SWORN IN BY THE 3RD RESPONDENT ```