Criminal prosecution not barred by RBI Act where section 58E applies only to offences under that Act, not other statutes.

Criminal proceedings under the Penal Code and the Negotiable Instruments Act were not barred by the Reserve Bank of India Act, because that Act contained no provision prohibiting continuation of such prosecutions. Section 58E operated only as a bar against taking cognizance of offences committed under the Reserve Bank of India Act itself, not as a general embargo on prosecutions under other enactments. The Company Law Board's power under section 45QA was also held not to curtail the criminal court's jurisdiction to proceed with the prosecution, so the challenge to quash the proceedings failed.

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Issues: Whether the criminal proceedings and cognizance taken for offences under the Penal Code and the Negotiable Instruments Act were liable to be quashed on the ground that the Reserve Bank of India Act barred such prosecution and that the Company Law Board's power under section 45QA displaced the criminal court's jurisdiction.

Analysis: The criminal court's cognizance was challenged under the inherent jurisdiction of the Court. The Reserve Bank of India Act was found not to contain any provision prohibiting continuation of criminal proceedings. Section 58E was treated as a bar only against taking cognizance of offences committed under that Act itself, and not as a general embargo on prosecutions under other enactments. The power of the Company Law Board under section 45QA was held not to curtail the authority of the criminal court to proceed with the prosecution.

Conclusion: The challenge to the continuance of the criminal proceedings was rejected and the request to quash the impugned order failed.

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