Priyank Rana vs State Of Uttarakhand & Another

Pankaj Purohit, J

Heard learned Counsel for the parties.

By means of present C482 application, applicant has put to challenge the summoning order dated 08.10.2020, passed by learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate 1st, Dehradun in Criminal Case No.3348 of 2020, State vs. Priyank Rana, under Sections 323, 504, 498-A IPC and Section 3/4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 196 and Section 3(1)(x) of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 and the charge-sheet dated 21.08.2020 (FIR No. 200 of 2020 dated 24.06.2020) as well as the entire proceedings of the aforesaid criminal case.

Facts in brief are that respondent no.2 and applicant got married as per Hindu rites and rituals. Thereafter, she was tortured and harassed by the applicant and his family members on several occasions. Thereafter, applicant and his family members were demanded dowry from respondent no.2 and used caste indicative words against respondent no.2 and her family members. On one occasion, respondent no. 2 also tried to commit suicide but with the help of her brother, her life was saved. With the aforesaid allegations, the first information report was lodged against the applicant and two others on 24.06.2020.

After investigation, the charge-sheet was submitted by the police against the applicant on 21.08.2020. Thereafter, the learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate-1st Dehradun took cognizance on charge-sheet and summoned the applicant on 08.10.2020 in Criminal Case No.3348 of 2020.

It is contended by learned counsel for the applicant that all disputes between the applicant-husband and respondent no.2-wife have been settled amicably and the marriage between the parties has also been dissolved by a decree of divorce by the court of competent jurisdiction. All those documents have been brought by the learned counsel for the applicant before this Court by filing a supplementary affidavit.

I have gone through the annexures annexed with supplementary affidavit as well as the grounds mentioned in the C482 application, it reflects that the submissions made by learned counsel for the applicant are correct.

In para 14 of the C482 application, it has been pleaded by the applicant on oath that the respondent no.2 filed a divorce petition against him, which was ex-parte decreed in favour of respondent no.2 on 11.08.2023 by the Family Court.

It is also contended by learned counsel for the applicant that the ex-parte divorce decree has been granted in favour of respondent no.2 and he has never challenged that order as the matter is amicably settled between the parties.

In view of the amicable settlement which is reflected from the pleadings as well as the annexures to the supplementary affidavit, this Court is of the view that since the parties have settled the dispute amicably; they do not want to pursue the aforesaid criminal case, therefore, there is no useful purpose for keeping this criminal case pending and it will be a futile exercise to ask the applicant to appear before the trial court as accused to face the trial.

In view of the aforesaid facts and circumstances, the present C482 application is allowed. Accordingly, the summoning order dated 08.10.2020 as well as the entire proceedings of Criminal Case No.3348 of 2020, State vs. Priyank Rana, under Sections 323, 504, 498-A IPC and Section 3/4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 and Section 3(1)(x) of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, pending in the court of learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate-1st, Dehradun are hereby quashed qua the applicant. The charge-sheet dated 21.08.2020 and the FIR dated 24.06.2020 arising out of FIR No. 200 of 2020 shall also stand quashed.

Other pending applications, stand disposed of accordingly. However, it is left open to the respondent no.2 to get this order recalled if she is not satisfied with it.