SUSHIL KUMAR AND ORS.versusSTATE OF HARYANA AND ORS.

A                        SUSHIL KUMAR AND ORS.
                                        v.
                      STATE OF HARYANA AND ORS.

                             DECEMBER 8, 1987

B                     [A.P. SEN AND L.M. SHARMA, JJ.]

          Power of Magistrate to frame charges under Sections 471 and
    474, Cr. P.C. in the absence of a complaint from a Civil Court-Bar
    of section 195(1)(b)(ii), Cr. P.C. thereon.

C
                ,._
          The alli>ellant Sushil Kumar filed a Civil Suit against the wife of
    respondenttJo. 2 and obtained, on the strength of a copy of a deed of
                                                                                -1j
    partnership, a temporary injunction restraining the wife and her
    husband ftom interfering with the possession of some property.
    Thereupon the respondent No. 2 lodged a report with the police
    against the appellants, alleging that the partnership deed was a forged
0   one and, accordingly, the appellants had committed offences punish·
    able under ss. 465, 468, 471, 474, 1208 and 420, I.P.C. The magis·
    trate framed charges against the appellants under ss. 465, 468, 1208
    and 420, I.P.C., but refrained from framing charges under ss. 471 &
    474, I.P.C., on the ground that, in the absence of a complaint from
    the Civil Court, he could not take cognizance under those sections.
E
          On a revision preferred by the State, the Additional Sessions
                                                                                 1
    Judge upheld the order of the magistrate. The respondent No. 2 then
    moved the High Court under s. 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure
    1973, which reversed the decision, holding that as the document was
    not forged during the period it was in Court Custody, the bar of s.
F   195(1)(b)(ii) Cr.P.C. was not attracted, and directed the magistrate to
    frame fresh charges. The appellants thereupon appealed to this Court
    by special leave against the order of the High Court.

         Dismissing the appeal and confirming the direction of the High
    Court but on a different ground, the Court,
G                                                                               .-~

        HELD: The. original document, the deed of partnership, was
  not filed in the Civil Court and a temporary injunction was obtained          _.+
  on the strength of its copy. The reasoning given by the High Court
  in support of its judg:nent is not correct but that does not help
  the appellants. The Privy Council in Sanmukhsingh v. The King,
H [1949] L.R. 77 I.A. 7, observed that by production of a copy of the
                                      182
                         SUSHIL KUMAR v. STATE OF HARYANA (SHARMA, J.]            183

                 allegedly forged document, it cannot be said that the document itself   A
                 was given in evidence. This view accords with the plain grammatical
 >       '       meaning of the words and is also supported by the practical common
                 sense, 11840, F-G)

                       Since the document alleged to have been forged in the case was
                 not produced in the Court, the provisions of section 195(l)(b)(ii) of   B
                 the Code of Criminal Procedure have no ap~lication. The High
                 Court's direction is confirmed but on a different ground, as indi-
                 cated, I 184G-H)

                     Sanmukhsingh v. The King, 119491 L.R, 77 1,A, 7 and Budhu
                 Ram v, State of Rajasthan, 11963) 3 S.C.R. 376, referred to.
     I                                                                                   c
 )...
                      CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Criminal Appeal
                 No. 617 of 1987.

                      From the Judgment and Order dated 20.3.1987 of the Punjab
                 and Haryana High Court in Crl. Misc. No. 5338-M of 1986.                D

                      Prem Malhotra for the Appellants.

                      S.C. Mohanta, C.V.S. Rao, A.K. Goel, and 8.P. Singh for the

t-           I
                 Respondents.

                      The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
                                                                                         E


 ·" '         SHARMA, J. This appeal is directed against the judgment of
   ..\_the High Court of Punjab and Haryana reversing the order of the
        Judicial Magistrate, Hissar refusing to frame charges against the
  }- appellants under ss. 471 and 474 of the Indian Penal Code. The F
        dispute between the parties arose out of a difference between them in
        connection with a partnership business. The appellant Sushi! Kumar
        filed a civil suit against Smt. Shakuntala Devi, wife of Inder Prakash,
        respondent No. 2. Relying upon a copy of a deed of partnership, he
 + , obtained a temporary in junction restraining her and her husband
        from interfering with the possession of a certain property. The G
    \   respondent No. 2, thereupon, lodged a report with the police against
    !-- the appellants alleging that the partnership deed was a forged one
        and that they being parties to the forgery had committed offences
        punishable under ss. 465, 468, 471, 474, 120B and 420 !PC. A challan
        was submitted and the learned Magistrate framed charges against the
        appellants under ss. 465, 468, 120B and 420 !PC, but refrained from H
    184                   SUPREME COURT REPORTS           [1988] 2 S.C.R.

A   framing any charge under ss. 471 and 474 !PC holding that he could
    not take cognizance under these sections in the absence of a comp-
    laint from the civil court.                                              '   ..
        2. The State preferred a revision and the Additional Sessions
B Judge, Hissar, who heard the application upheld the order of the
  Magistrate. The respondent No. 2, therefore, moved the High Court
  under section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (herein-
  after referred to as the Code) and a learned Single Judge reversed the
  decision holding that as the document was not forged during the
  period it was in court custody the bar of Section 195(1)(b )(ii) of the
  Code was not attracted. The Magistrate was accordingly directed to
C frame fresh charges. The appellants, after obtaining special leave, are
  challenging this order in the present appeal.

           3. According to the allegations in the first information report
    the partnership deed in question was forged by the appellant Sushi!
    Kumar and Shiv Nandan in league with the officials of the Income tax
D Department and Sushi! Kumar, thereafter, produced a copy of the
    forged deed in the suit. The original document was not filed in the
    civil court, and temporary injunction was obtained on the strength of
    its copy. We shall assume that the reasoning given by the High Court
    in support of its judgment is not correct but that does not help the
    appellants. Sub-section (l)(b)(ii) of Section 195 of the Code lays
E down that no court shall take cognizance of any offence described in
    the sections mentioned therein when such offence is alleged to have
    been committed in respect of "a document produced or given in
                                                                             1-
    evidedce in a proceeding in any Court. Interpreting the similar
    language of the corresponding provision in the earlier Criminal
    Procedure Code of 1898, the Privy Council in Sanmukhsingh v. The
F King, [1949] L.R. 77 l.A. 7, observed that by production of a copy of
    the allegedly forged document it cannot be said that the document
    itself was given in evidence. This view, as pointed out, accords with
  · the plain grammatical meaning of the words and is also supported by
    the practical cor.1mon sense. The Judgment of the Judicial Committee
    was followed in Budhu Ram v. State of Rajasthan, [1963] 3 SCR 376.
G Accordingly, we hold that since the document alleged to have been
    forged was not in the present case produced in the court, the provi-
    sions of the section 195(1)(b)(ii) of the Code have no arplication.
    We, therefore, confirm the High Court's direction, but on a different
    ground as indicated. The appeal is dismissed.
H
    S.L.                                                Appeal dismissed.