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2015 DIGILAW 960 (BOM)

Datta Babanrao Borekar v. State of Maharashtra

2015-04-09

A.B.CHAUDHARI, P.N.DESHMUKH

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JUDGMENT A.B. Chaudhari, J. 1. Following is the prayer clause in the present application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure: "It is, therefore, most respectfully prayed that F.I.R. registered against applicants at Police Station, Warora vide C.R. No. 87/2007 for offences u/s. 143, 147, 148, 149, 353, 186, 307, 117, 294, 506 IPC r/w Sec. 3(2)(v) of the S.C. & ST. (Prevention of Atrocities) Act may kindly be quashed." We have heard learned A.P.P. for the non applicant State. We have perused the FIR dated 14.04.2007, that was lodged by Tilaksingh Thakur, Police Inspector, Police Station, Warora. Perusal of the FIR shows that the police authority had gone to village Wadgaon, Tq. Warora, on the information about possibility of law and order situation when the accused persons i.e. applicants arrived there in three vehicles with posters of "Shiv Sena" and were armed with sticks, iron rods and police party tried to stop them from going ahead. However, they abused police party in filthy language and also man handled the police party. It is, in this context, the above offences were registered against the applicants. 2. Upon perusal of the FIR and the charge sheet, we find that there is no reason for insertion of the offence under Section 3(2)(v) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in the FIR as well as charge sheet. The allegation in the FIR reveals filthy abuses and intimidation to the police party and the persons belonging to the Scheduled Caste. Section 3(2)(v) of the Act reads as under: "3.(2) Whoever, not being a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe,- (i) to (iv)..... (v) commits any offence under the Indian Penal Code (45 of 1860) punishable with imprisonment for a term of ten years or more against a person or property on the ground that such person is a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe or such property belongs to such member, shall be punishable with imprisonment for life and with fine;" 3. Perusal of the FIR and charge sheet does not at all show that the applicants committed offence against any person or property on the ground that the said person is a member of Scheduled Caste or that the said property belongs to the Scheduled Caste. Perusal of the FIR and charge sheet does not at all show that the applicants committed offence against any person or property on the ground that the said person is a member of Scheduled Caste or that the said property belongs to the Scheduled Caste. On the contrary, it appears from the averments in the FIR that the applicants had gone to show their power with weapons in three vehicles and nothing more and did not abuse the police party but then that does not constitute any offence under Section 3(2)(v) of the S.C. & S.T. (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. 4. However, insofar as the other offences registered against the applicants and charge sheet filed against them are concerned, we are of the firm opinion that it will not be possible for us to hold that the applicants are not at all guilty of those offences registered against them. In our opinion, it is for the trial court to evaluate the entire charge sheet and then come to a conclusion. In the jurisdiction under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, it is not possible for us to evaluate any evidence or statement under Section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. We are, therefore, inclined to quash the registration of offence under Section 3(2)(v) of S.C. & S.T. (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, so also charge sheet. We, however, reserve liberty in favour of the applicants to apply for discharge or take such other steps as are available in law or alternate remedy since the charge sheet has been filed. In the result, we make the following order. ORDER "(i) Criminal Application No. 2956/2007 is partly allowed. (ii) Registration of offence under Section 3(2)(v) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act from FIR as well as charge sheet in Regular Criminal Case No. 226/2007 pending on the file of J.M.F.C, Warora, stands deleted and quashed. (iii) Registration of other offences in the FIR as well as charge sheet are not interfered with and the learned Magistrate shall proceed with the matter. However, we reserve liberty in favour of the applicants to take such other steps as are available in law since the charge sheet has been filed in the matter."