Meenakshi Rajput vs Kapil Dev Rajput & Anr.

Hon’ble Siddhartha Sah, J. (Oral)

By means of the present transfer application under Section 447 of the BNSS, the applicant has sought the transfer of Criminal Case No. 41 of 2024, State versus Meenakshi Devi, pending in the court of the Civil Judge (Junior Division)/Judicial Magistrate, Chakrata, Dehradun, under Sections 323, 504, and 506 of the IPC, from the court of the Civil Judge (Junior Division)/Judicial Magistrate, Chakrata, Dehradun, to a competent court at Rishikesh.

Learned counsel for the applicant would submit that the matter arises out of a matrimonial dispute. She further states that the applicant is the wife of the respondent and that she has no means to travel to Chakrata from her parental place at Najibabad. She would further submit that the proceedings are an outcome of a matrimonial dispute and deserve to be quashed. She would further submit that multiple proceedings are pending between the applicant and the respondent, and that it was the applicant who lodged the first report against the respondent, and, in counterblast, this FIR has been lodged, and the proceedings deserve to be quashed.

She would further submit that a case under Section 125 of the Cr.P.C. for maintenance is pending in the court at Najibabad. She would further submit that an ex-parte divorce decree has already been passed against the applicant, against which the applicant has approached this Court.

Per contra, learned counsel for the informant/respondent, Mr. Narendra Bali, would submit that the FIR has been registered against the applicant at P.S. Chakrata and that, after due investigation, a charge-sheet has been submitted against the applicant. The trial is underway in the court of the Civil Judge (Junior Division)/Judicial Magistrate, Chakrata, District Dehradun, under Sections 323, 504, and 506 of the IPC. Cognizance was taken in the year 2024 by virtue of the order dated 27th July 2024. The very purpose of filing the present transfer application is to delay the proceedings of the trial. He would thus submit that there is no scope for transfer and that no good ground has been made out for the transfer of the case from Chakrata to Rishikesh, as sought by means of the present transfer application under Section 447 of the BNSS.

After hearing the rival contentions of the counsel for the parties, it is clear that the applicant is the wife and the respondent is the husband. The present transfer application emanates from an FIR which was lodged at the behest of the respondent against the applicant, and after the lodging of the FIR, the same culminated in the filing of a charge-sheet, and thereafter, cognizance was taken by the trial court vide order dated 27.07.2024, whereby the applicant was summoned to face trial under Sections 323, 504, and 506 of the IPC.

The ground, as agitated by the learned counsel for the applicant, is that the parties are having matrimonial disputes. The applicant resides in Najibabad, whereas the criminal case is pending in the court of the Civil Judge (Junior Division)/Judicial Magistrate, Chakrata, Dehradun. Chakrata is quite far away from Najibabad; therefore, the applicant does not have any means to travel to Chakrata. Therefore, the trial be transferred to a competent court in Rishikesh.

Learned counsel for the applicant has submitted that since Chakrata would be very far away from Najibabad, the applicant would face considerable difficulty in travelling to a distant place like Chakrata, and she may be permitted to appear online through video conferencing in the court below.

On the other hand, learned counsel for the informant/respondent would submit that the present transfer application is just a ruse being adopted by the applicant to delay the proceedings of the trial. He would submit that the alleged lack of means is no ground to transfer the case to any other court, inasmuch as the incident has occurred within the jurisdiction of the trial court, and it is fully competent to try the case.

After having considered the submissions of counsel for the parties, it is clear that the trial is pending in the court of the Civil Judge (Junior Division)/Judicial Magistrate, Chakrata, Dehradun. The grounds of matrimonial disputes between the parties and that the applicant does not have the means to travel to Chakrata appear to be just an excuse and an attempt to delay the proceedings of the trial, as has been pointed out by the learned counsel for the respondent. As such, there is no question of transferring the criminal case from the court of the Civil Judge (Junior Division)/Judicial Magistrate, Chakrata, District Dehradun, to a court in Rishikesh.

The liberty as sought by the learned counsel for the applicant appears to be just, and considering the facility of appearing through video conferencing, the prayer as made by the learned counsel for the applicant is allowed. However, the applicant is directed to appear in person on the dates when her personal appearance is required, like recording of her statement under Section 313 CrPC, delivery of judgment, or any other stage for which her personal appearance may be necessary.

With the aforesaid liberty of appearing through video conferencing, the present transfer application is dismissed.