Non-speaking SLP dismissal no merger; post-conviction compromise under the Negotiable Instruments Act can still support compounding and acquittal.

A non-speaking dismissal of an SLP in limine does not cause merger of the High Court judgment with the Supreme Court order. On that basis, a recall application remained maintainable where the parties later compromised in a prosecution under the Negotiable Instruments Act. Section 147 of that Act was treated as an enabling provision with overriding effect, permitting compounding of the Section 138 offence even after conviction, and Section 362 CrPC did not bar such relief. The compromise was accepted, the offence was compounded, and the conviction and sentence were set aside, resulting in acquittal.

---

---

Issues: Whether a judgment of conviction affirmed in revision could be recalled after dismissal of the special leave petition, and whether the offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 could be compounded on the basis of the parties' compromise.

Analysis: Dismissal of the special leave petition in limine by a non-speaking order did not result in merger of the High Court's judgment with the order of the Supreme Court. The power to entertain the recall application was held to be available in the light of the statutory scheme and the settled position that Section 147 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 is an enabling provision giving overriding effect to compounding of offences under that Act notwithstanding the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. Section 362 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 did not bar the relief, because compounding under a special statute was treated as permissible even after conviction where the compromise was complete and the complainant had no objection.

Conclusion: The recall application was maintainable, the compromise was accepted, and the offence was compounded; the conviction and sentence were set aside and the petitioner was acquitted.

Final Conclusion: The decision recognizes that a post-conviction compromise under the Negotiable Instruments Act can justify recall and compounding even after dismissal of an SLP, leading to setting aside of the conviction and acquittal.

Ratio Decidendi: A non-speaking dismissal of an SLP does not attract merger, and Section 147 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 permits compounding of an offence under Section 138 even after conviction, overriding the general bar on review or alteration of judgment under Section 362 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

---