TMI Blog1953 (4) TMI 21X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... that the complainant had killed his mother by throttling her and that there were marks of injury on the body which they could show to the sub- Inspector if he caused the body to be brought down from the pyre. At their suggestion the fire was extinguished and the dead body was taken down from the pyre in spite of the protests from the complainant. On an examination of the dead body it was found that there were no marks of injury on. it and the appellants were unable to point out any such marks. The body was however sent for postmortem examination which was held on 5th September, 1949, but no injury was found on the person of the deceased. The sub-inspector after investigation reached the conclusion that a false complaint had been made against Dhirendra Nath. On the 24th September, 1949, Dhirendra Nath filed a petition of complaint in the Court of the Sub-Divisional Officer of Uluberia in the district of Howrali against the appellants in both the cases and one Sanwaral Huq. It was alleged in the complaint that the information given by Nurul Huda to the police was false, that Nurul Huda and the other appellants had made imputations mala fide out of enmity against him with the inten ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 31st July, 1,950, set aside the convictions and sentences and acquitted them. He held that on the facts stated in the complaint the only offence that could be said to have been committed by the appellants was one under section 182 or section 21 1, Indian Penal Code, and that a court was not competent to take cognizance of those offences except on a complaint by a proper authority under the provisions of section 195, Criminal Procedure Code. Against the acquittal order an application in revision was preferred to the High Court. This petition came up for hearing before a Bench of the High Court (K. C. Das Gupta and P. N. Mookerjee JJ.). The learned judges reached the conclusion that on the facts alleged in the petition of complaint distinct offences under sections 182, 297 and 500, Indian Penal Code, had been disclosed. They however referred for the decision of the Full Bench the following question:- If the facts alleged in a petition of complaint, or in an information received by the magistrate, on which a magistrate can ordinarily take cognizance of an offence under section 190, Criminal Procedure Code, disclose an offence of which cognizance cannot be taken by the magistrate ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... by the Full Bench in itself was of sufficient importance to justify the granting of a certificate under article 134(1)(c). As the judgment of the Full Bench did not terminate the proceedings but merely directed the appeal to be reheard, it was held that the petitioners could not appeal from it at that time and it was open to them to raise the point at this stage. The second question was considered of sufficient importance to justify the grant of leave and leave was accordingly granted. The learned counsel for the respondent raised a preliminary objection in order to canvass the first question mentioned above, while the learned counsel for the appellants canvassed the question of the correctness of the decision of the Full Bench on its merits. He contended that the magistrate had no jurisdiction to take cognizance of the complaint under section 500 and section 297, Indian Penal Code, as the facts disclosed constituted an offence under section 182 which offence could not be tried except on a complaint by a public servant. Section 195, Criminal Procedure Code, on which the question raised is grounded, provides, inter alia, that no court shall take cognizance of an offence pu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sed that the provisions of section 195 would stand defeated by the magistrate having taken cognizance of the offence under that section. As regards the charge under section 500, Indian Penal Code, it seems fairly clear both on principle and authority that where the allegations made in a false report disclose two distinct offences, one against the public servant and the other against a private individual, that other is not debarred by the provisions of section 195 from seeking redress for the offence committed against him. Section 499, Indian Penal Code, which mentions the ingredients of the offence of defamation gives within defined limits immunity to persons making depositions in court, but it is now well settled that immunity is a qualified one and is not absolute as it is in English law. Under section 198, Criminal Procedure Code, a complaint in respect of an offence under section 499, Indian Penal Code, can only be initiated at the instance of the person defamed, in like manner as cognizance for an offence under section 182 cannot be taken except at the complaint of the public -servant concerned. In view of these provisions there does not seem in principle any warrant for th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... disclosed some of which require sanction and others do not, it is open to the complainant to proceed in respect of those only which do not require sanction; because to hold otherwise would amount to legislating and adding very materially to the provisions of section-is 195 to 199 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Sections 195 to 199 deal with the requisites for the prosecution of certain specified offences and the provisions of those sections must be limited to prosecutions for the offences actually indicated. If it was the intention of the legislature to make sanctions or complaints in a certain form necessary for the prosecution of all offences disclosed by facts which would give rise to any of the offences specifically indicated in these sections, the legislature could have said so but it did not. Recently this matter was canvassed before a Full Bench of the Madras High Court and it was held that in such cases it was open to the party defamed to take proceedings under section 499, Indian Penal Code, without the court filing a complaint in accordance with the provisions laid down in section 195. There the question was whether the alleged defamer who had given false evidence in a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Hori Ram Singh v. The Crown([1939] F.C.R. 159.). The appellant in that case was charged with offences under sections 409 and 477-A, Indian Penal Code. The offence under section 477-A could not be taken cognizance of without the previous consent of the Governor under section 270(1) of the Constitution Act, while the consent of the Governor was not required for the institution of the proceedings under section 409, Indian Penal Code. The charge was that the accused dishonestly misappropriated or converted to his own certain medicines entrusted to him in his official capacity as a sub-assistant surgeon in the Punjab Provincial Subordinate Medical Service. He was further charged that being a public servant, be wilfully and with intent to defraud omitted to record certain entries in a stock book of medicines belonging to the hospital where he was employed and in his possession. The proceedings under section 477-A were quashed by the Federal Court for want of jurisdiction, the consent of the Governor not having been obtained, but the case was sent back to the sessions judge for hearing oil the merits as regards the charge under section 409, Indian Penal Code, and the order of acquittal p ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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