Supreme Court quashes criminal proceedings using the power under Section 482 CrPC

While hearing the Usha Chakraborty vs. State of West Bengal case, the Supreme Court stated that the criminal proceedings are to be quashed under Section 482 CrPC. The Supreme Court bench comprising Justice Ajay Rastogi and C.T. Ravikumar Illustrated that “The appellants and the respondents have given a cloak of criminal offence in the issue.” The top Court quashed the criminal proceedings after observing that the filed application did not satisfy the essential ingredients attracting alleged offences under Section 156(3) CrPC. The judgment was passed in context with the criminal appeal arising out of the Calcutta High Court’s judgment. The appellants approached the High Court under Section 482 CrPC with a motive to quash the FIR under Sections 323, 384, 406, 423, 467, 468, 420, and 120B of the IPC which was further declined by the HC.

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During a detailed analysis, the Court observed that “there can be no doubt with respect to the position that jurisdiction under Section 482 CrPC is to be exercised with care and caution and sparingly”. Further, it was noted that the civil dispute related to the removal of the respondent from the School Secretary’s post was concealed. Following this, the top Court also referred to the judgment passed in the case Paramjeet Batra vs, State of Uttarakhand for delivering the decision. They further highlighted that “we have no hesitation to hold that permitting continuance of the criminal proceedings against the appellants in the aforesaid circumstances would result in abuse of the process of Court and also in miscarriage of justice.” Thus, the registered FIR at Madhyagram Police Station and further proceedings were quashed and the appeal was allowed.  

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