TMI Blog1988 (9) TMI 359X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... G.R. No. 646/87). While this application was pending for admission the petitioners filed a petition for amendment of the prayer portion of the main application and to treat the amendment petition as part of the main application, which was allowed vide order dated 7.7.1988. 2. By amendment now the petitioners have also prayed for quashing of the entire criminal proceeding including the investigation pertaining to the aforesaid case pending in the court of the Sub-divisional Judicial Magistrate, Kishanganj. 3. The facts relevant for the disposal of this application, in short, are that the petitioner No. 1 is a Hindu Undivided Family (HUF) firm carrying on business, inter alia, as Bullion Merchants and Commission Agents at Kishanganj and ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rying two silver bars. The police suspected it to be the stolen property and lodged the aforesaid first information report before the Officer Incharge Railway Police Station, Kishanganj, on the same day for an offence under Section 414 of the Indian Penal Code (hereinafter referred to as the Penal Code ) and started investigation. 7. It further appears that in course of interrogation the said two employees disclosed that they were carrying the silver bars en route to Delhi on behalf of the petitioner firm and immediately showed the original folio of the silver transport voucher, but the Assistant Sub-Inspector arrested the two persons and seized the aforesaid four silver bars and ticket which they were possessing from Kishanganj to Dalk ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and since the goods were carried under valid voucher in regular course of business for sale to Delhi, no case under Section 414 of the Penal Code has been made out against the petitioners. It was further contended that since no offence has been made out at all on the facts, as stated in the first information report, any further continuation of the Criminal proceeding is an abuse of the process of the court. Therefore, it must be quashed. 12. In support of his contention he has drawn my attention to Section 414 of the Penal Code and pointed out that unless there is a case of theft no case under Section 414 of the Penal Code could be made out. Section 414 of the Penal Code reads as follows: Whoever voluntarily assists in concealing or d ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... is manifest that the goods which were seized by the Railway Police are mentioned in the Silver Transport Voucher. Therefore, it cannot be believed that the seized articles were stolen articles and prima facie, in my view, no case has been made out under Section 414 of the Penal Code. 14. Mr. Bharuka in support of his contention has further argued that where no case has been made out, the Court is competent to quash the proceedings even at the initial stage of investigation. He has relied upon the decisions reported in the case of Smt. Nagawwa v. Veeranna Shivalingappa Konjalgi others (A.I.R. 1976 S.C. 1947), and State of West Bengal and others v. Swapan Kumar Guha and others (A.I.R. 1982 S.C. 949). 15. In Nagawwa's case (supra) ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the process of the Court. 16. On behalf of the State it was contended that this Court should not quash the investigation at this stage. I may point out here that the case was registered as far back as 30.9.1987 and till today i.e. about ten months have passed the investigation has not been completed. It was contended that there is nothing to investigate in the case. The police is keeping the investigation pending for the reasons best known to them. It is merely a harassment to the petitioner, therefore, it must be stopped. In this connection he has relied upon the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of State of West Bengal others vs. Swapan Kumar Guha others (supra), where it Has been laid down that the condition p ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nferred that the articles in question were stolen property. It is now well settled that this Court can quash the criminal proceeding even in initial stage in its inherent power where the allegation in the first information report, even they are taken at their face value and accepted in its entirety, do not make out any offence. The police has no authority to proceed with such investigation and to allow the police to proceed with such investigation will amount to mala fide exercise or abuse of power. This point has already been settled by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the well known decision in R.P. Kapoor vs. The State of Punjab as far back as 1960 reported in A.I.R. 1960 S.C. 866. In the said case while laying down the principles in wha ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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