Uttaranchal High Court: Manoj K. Tiwari, J. allowed a writ petition to quash criminal proceedings after parties compromise over a non-compoundable offence.
The petitioners were convicted for the charge of robbery under Section 392 of the Penal Code, 1860. The learned counsels for both the parties, Mr Mani Kumar for the petitioners and Mr Kishore Rai for respondent 3, submitted that the dispute was amicably settled and the parties want to bury the hatchet. A writ petition seeking quashing of the FIR lodged against the petitioners and a compounding application was duly filed in the court.
The Court commented extensively on the power conferred by Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 stating its primary need to be the prevention of abuse of the process of any court or to secure the ends of justice. It is equally well settled that the power is not to be resorted to if there is a specific provision in the Code for the redress of the grievance of an aggrieved party. It should be exercised very sparingly and it should not be exercised as against the express bar of law engrafted in any other provision of the Code.
As to when can a High Court quash criminal proceedings in view of a settlement between the parties, the offences being non-compoundable, the Court took the Supreme Court’s view in Gian Singh v. State of Punjab (2012) 10 SCC 303 which was that it can do so if in its opinion continuation of criminal proceedings will be an exercise in futility and justice in the case demands that the dispute between the parties is put to an end and peace is restored; securing the ends of justice being the ultimate guiding factor.
In view of the points of law discussed above, the Court acknowledged that the possibility of a conviction from a trial seemed rather bleak and remote considering the parties have entered into a compromise and thus, allowed the writ petition. [Gurmukh v. State of Uttarakhand, 2019 SCC OnLine Utt 1138, decided on 08-11-2019]
