A. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881—Section 138—Dishonour of Cheque—Joint Account Holder—Non-Signatory—Prosecution Not Maintainable— A joint account holder who has not signed the dishonoured cheque cannot be prosecuted under Section 138 merely because she is a joint account holder or wife of the signatory—liability under Section 138 is confined to the drawer of the cheque, except where Section 141 applies. (Paras 4–5) B. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881—Section 138—Quashing of Proceedings—Joint Account—Non-Signatory—Abuse of Process— Where the applicant was impleaded as an accused solely on the ground that she was a joint account holder and wife of the cheque-signatory, without any allegation of her having signed or drawn the cheque, continuation of the...

A. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881—Sections 138, 118 & 139—Dishonour of Cheque—Legally enforceable debt—Statutory presumption—Once issuance and execution of cheque are admitted/proved, presumptions under Sections 118 and 139 arise in favour of holder; however, legally enforceable debt must exist on the date of issuance and the accused can rebut the presumption by a probable defence—On facts, defence having failed to rebut the statutory presumption, liability under Section 138 was established. (Paras 11–12) B. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881—Section 138—Statutory notice—Deemed service—Sentence and compensation—Notice sent to the correct address is presumed duly served under Section 27, General Clauses Act; complaint filed after expiry of 15 days from deemed se...

A. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973—Section 125(4)—Maintenance—Disqualification—Wife living in adultery, refusing to live with husband without sufficient reason, or living separately by mutual consent is disentitled to maintenance; finding of adultery and voluntary withdrawal from matrimonial home upheld. [Paras 4, 9–11] B. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973—Sections 397 & 401—Revisional Jurisdiction—Revisional jurisdiction is limited; concurrent findings of fact cannot be disturbed unless perverse, illegal or patently unreasonable. [Paras 9, 13–14] C. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973—Section 125—Maintenance—Social Justice—Section 125 is a beneficial provision intended to prevent destitution, but the entitlement remains subject to statutory disqualifications unde...

A. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Sections 306 & 107—Abetment of Suicide—Essential Ingredients—Conviction requires proof of direct or indirect instigation, incitement or intentional aid coupled with mens rea and a proximate nexus with suicide; mere harassment or legal proceedings is insufficient. [Paras 8–10, 14] B. Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973—Section 482—Quashing of FIR—Suicide Note—Mere expression of anguish in a suicide note, without specific evidence of proximate instigation or extreme harassment, does not sustain prosecution; FIR quashed to prevent abuse of process. [Paras 10–15] C. Indian Penal Code, 1860—Section 306—Abetment of Suicide—Legal Proceedings—Spouse or advocates pursuing maintenance, domestic-violence or other lawful remedies cann...

A. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881—Section 138—Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973—Section 372 Proviso—Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023—Section 413—Appeal against acquittal—Complainant as victim—Held: In prosecutions under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, the complainant, being the payee or holder in due course of the dishonoured cheque, is also the "victim" of the offence and, therefore, possesses an independent statutory right to challenge an order of acquittal under the proviso to Section 372 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973/Section 413 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 before the Court immediately superior to the Trial Court, namely the Sessions Court. Consequently, appeals erroneously instituted before the High Court under Section 378 o...

A. Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881—Section 138—Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973—Section 372 Proviso—Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023—Section 413—Appeal against acquittal—Complainant as victim—Held: In a prosecution under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, the complainant, being the payee or holder of the dishonoured cheque, is also a "victim" of the offence and is entitled to prefer an appeal against an order of acquittal under the proviso to Section 372 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973/Section 413 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 before the Court immediately superior to the Trial Court, namely the Sessions Court. Such remedy is independent of the procedure under Section 378 of the Code, and pending appeals presented before the High Court ...

A. Penal Code, 1860 (IPC)—Section 307—Attempt to murder—Essential ingredients—To constitute an offence under Section 307 IPC, the prosecution must establish the requisite intention or knowledge to cause death coupled with an overt act towards its commission—The nature of the weapon used, situs and gravity of injuries, and surrounding circumstances are relevant in determining such intention or knowledge—Mere causing of injury, without proving the requisite mens rea, does not attract Section 307 IPC. [Para 12] B. Evidence—Ocular and medical evidence—Appreciation of evidence—Ocular evidence ordinarily prevails over medical evidence; however, where medical evidence completely rules out or renders the eyewitness version inherently improbable, the ocular testimony loses credibility and ca...

A. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC)—Section 482—Quashing of FIR—Exercise of inherent powers—High Court may quash criminal proceedings where allegations against relatives of the husband are vague, omnibus, and devoid of specific instances of cruelty or overt acts—Mere general allegations, without attributing distinct roles, are insufficient to sustain prosecution, particularly where relatives reside separately and are unnecessarily implicated—Continuation of such proceedings amounts to abuse of the process of law. [Paras 1, 3.1, 5.2, 5.4, 6] B. Penal Code, 1860 (IPC)—Section 498A—Matrimonial disputes—Ordinary wear and tear of matrimonial life, minor domestic disagreements, or belated allegations unsupported by specific material do not constitute cruelty within the meaning of Sect...

A. Gujarat Panchayats Act, 1993—Gujarat Panchayats Election Rules, 1994—Rule 61—Recount of Votes—A candidate seeking recount of votes must submit a written application to the Returning Officer immediately after the announcement of the total votes polled and before declaration of the result, clearly specifying the grounds for recount—An oral request does not satisfy the mandatory requirements of the Rules. [Paras 16, 21, 27, 28] B. Gujarat Panchayats Election Rules, 1994—Rule 61—Recount Application—The statutory right to seek recount exists only during the interval between the announcement of votes polled and the declaration of the election result—An application made after declaration of the result is belated and not maintainable. [Paras 26, 29] C. Gujarat Panchayats Election Rule...

A. Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC)—Section 482 (Corresponding to Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023)—Quashing of FIR—Inherent powers—The High Court may exercise its inherent jurisdiction to quash criminal proceedings where the allegations in the FIR, even if accepted in their entirety, fail to disclose the essential ingredients of the alleged offence, so as to prevent abuse of the process of law and secure the ends of justice. [Paras 12, 15] B. Penal Code, 1860 (IPC)—Sections 306, 107—Abetment of suicide—Essential ingredients—To constitute abetment of suicide, the prosecution must establish a clear mens rea on the part of the accused to instigate, aid, or intentionally facilitate the commission of suicide—Mere allegations of harassment, quarrels, or abu...