{"id":239709,"date":"2020-11-27T02:40:54","date_gmt":"2020-11-26T21:10:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/?p=239709"},"modified":"2020-12-16T12:07:12","modified_gmt":"2020-12-16T06:37:12","slug":"no-relief-to-skoda-volkswagen-as-sc-refuses-to-quash-fir-over-alleged-use-of-cheat-devices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scconline.com\/blog\/post\/2020\/11\/27\/no-relief-to-skoda-volkswagen-as-sc-refuses-to-quash-fir-over-alleged-use-of-cheat-devices\/","title":{"rendered":"No relief to Skoda\u00a0Volkswagen as SC refuses to quash FIR over alleged use of cheat devices"},"content":{"rendered":"

Supreme Court<\/strong>: \u00a0The 3-judge bench of SA Bobde, CJ and A.S. Bopanna and V. Ramasubramanian*<\/strong>, JJ has reiterated that the Courts should not thwart any investigation unless no cognizable offence or offence of any kind is disclosed in the first information report that the Court will not permit an investigation to go on.<\/p>\n

Referring to the decision in State of Haryana\u00a0v.\u00a0Bhajan\u00a0Lal, (1992) Supp. (1) SCC 335, the Court said,<\/p>\n

\u201c(\u2026) the power of quashing should be exercised very sparingly and with circumspection and that too in the rarest of rare cases. While examining a complaint, the quashing of which is sought, the Court cannot embark upon an enquiry as to the reliability or genuineness or otherwise of the allegations made in the FIR or in the complaint.\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

In\u00a0S.M.\u00a0Datta\u00a0v.\u00a0State\u00a0of\u00a0Gujarat, (2001) 7 SCC 659 the Court cautioned that criminal proceedings ought not to be scuttled at the initial stage.<\/p>\n

\u201cQuashing of a complaint should rather be an exception and a rarity than an ordinary rule.\u00a0 (\u2026) if a perusal of the first information report leads to disclosure of an offence even broadly, law courts are barred from usurping the jurisdiction of the police, since the two organs of the State operate in two specific spheres of activities and one ought not to tread over the other sphere.\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

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FIR against Skoda Auto Volkswagen over alleged use of cheat devices<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
\n

Skoda\u00a0Auto\u00a0Volkswagen India\u00a0Private Limited is engaged in the business of manufacture, import and sale of passenger vehicles in India. The\u00a03rd Respondent\u00a0in the case lodged an FIR, alleging that he had bought 7 Audi Brand cars from the authorised dealers of the manufacturing Companies and knowing fully well that their vehicles have been installed with cheat devices, the manufacturer had prepared wrong records and documents.<\/p>\n

The Petitioner moved Allahabad High Court seeking quashing of the FIR alleging that the FIR is based entirely upon the order of the NGT, which is the subject matter of two civil appeals before the Supreme Court.<\/p>\n

Allahabad High Court rejected the prayer for quashing of the FIR. However, the High Court protected the officers of the petitioner against arrest till the submission of the Report under Section 173(2) Cr.P.C. subject however to the condition that they shall cooperate in the investigation.<\/p>\n

Not satisfied with a mere protection against arrest and the refusal of the Allahabad High Court to quash the FIR, the petitioner argued before the Supreme Court:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. That the Police cannot investigate an issue, the substratum of which is sub judice before this Court in the civil appeals arising out of the order of the NGT; and<\/li>\n
  2. That the High Court failed to take note of the long delay on the part of the 3rd Respondent in lodging the complaint and<\/li>\n
  3. That the VAHAN Portal of the Government shows the purchase of only 3 vehicles as against the claim of the 3rd Respondent to have purchased 7 vehicles.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
    \n

    Why the Supreme Court refused to quash FIR <\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n
    \n

    On Issue 1<\/strong><\/span><\/h4>\n

    Should pendency of the Civil Appeals and the interim order passed by Supreme Court be taken as a deterrent for anyone else to lodge a police complaint and seek an investigation?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

    Two original applications came to be filed before the NGT in the year 2015, alleging that the manufacturers of the vehicles in question were employing deceit devices. This coincided with the issue of notice by the Automotive Research Association of India to the manufacturers. The\u00a0 \u00a0applicants before the NGT did not seek any relief for themselves, as purchasers of vehicles. The reliefs sought by the applicants before the NGT were broad and general. Hence,<\/p>\n

    \u201c (\u2026) the order of the NGT, passed on the applications filed by certain individuals not claiming as purchasers of vehicles, cannot\u00a0\u00a0 be\u00a0\u00a0 taken\u00a0\u00a0 as\u00a0\u00a0 an\u00a0\u00a0 impediment\u00a0\u00a0 for\u00a0\u00a0 an\u00a0\u00a0 individual\u00a0\u00a0 who purchased cars from the manufacturers, to lodge a complaint, if he has actually suffered on account of any representation made by the manufacturers.\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

    Further, the interim order passed by the Supreme Court not to take any coercive steps has to be understood only in the context of the aforesaid directions of the NGT which became the subject matter of the Civil Appeals.<\/p>\n

    Can police investigate into the same set of allegations which form the subject matter of proceedings pending adjudication before Supreme Court?<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

    The question whether such devices are installed in the cars purchased by the 3rd respondent herein and the question whether there was any representation in this regard to the petitioner, are all questions of fact, peculiar and particular to the 3rd respondent herein. NGT had no occasion to examine the cars purchased by the 3rd respondent herein.<\/p>\n

    The Court said,<\/p>\n

    \u201cAt this stage no one can presume whether the defence of the manufacturer to the police complaint will be purely on a question of fact or purely on a question of law or on mixed questions of fact and law.\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n