New Delhi: The Supreme Court has held
that High Courts have a duty to quash complaints if the same
are filed by vested interests to harass individuals as
otherwise it would lead to injustice and harassment of the
innocent.
"In such cases, refusal to exercise the jurisdiction
may equally result in injustice, more particularly in cases
where the complainant sets the criminal law in motion with a
view to exerting pressure and harassing the persons arrayed as
accused in the complaint.
"It is well settled and needs no restatement that the
saving of inherent power of the High Court in criminal matters
is intended to achieve a salutary public purpose which is that
a court proceeding ought not to be permitted to degenerate
into a weapon of harassment or persecution. If such power is
not conceded, it may even lead to injustice," a bench of
Justices R V Raveendran and B Sudershan Reddy said.
The apex court said normally courts should not
interfere in criminal matters by quashing the complaints.
However, the power vested in the courts under Section
482 CrPC can be exercised if it is clear that the complainant
had filed the case with a malafide intent.
"But at the same time, the High Court cannot refuse to
exercise its jurisdiction if the interest of justice so
required where the allegations made in the FIR or complaint
are so absurd and inherently improbable on the basis of which
no fair-minded and informed observer can ever reach a just and
proper conclusion as to the existence of sufficient grounds
for proceeding," the apex court bench said while quashing the
criminal case against M N Ojha, senior manager of Punjab
National Bank, Patna.
Bureau Report
