Compounding of cheque dishonour offences cannot be forced unilaterally; complainant consent remains central absent full compensation.

Compounding of an offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act cannot be compelled by the accused merely by offering to deposit the cheque amount and costs. Section 147 makes the offence compoundable, but the manner of compounding remains subject to basic principles governing compounding and the complainant's consent. The court treated the earlier binding view as controlling and read the later view as permitting only a limited judicial discretion to close proceedings where the complainant has been duly compensated and the interests of justice so require. On the facts, the proposed payment was inadequate after a long delay and the complainant did not consent, so refusal to permit compounding was upheld.

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Issues: Whether an application to compound an offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act could be allowed without the complainant's consent merely because the accused was willing to deposit the cheque amount and costs, and whether the impugned refusal to permit compounding called for interference.

Analysis: Section 147 of the Negotiable Instruments Act makes the offence compoundable, but the manner of compounding remains controlled by the basic principles governing compounding. The earlier view in JIK Industries was treated as holding the field on the question whether consent of the complainant can be dispensed with, while the later view in Meters and Instruments was read as recognizing a limited discretion to close proceedings where the complainant has been duly compensated, not as creating a right in the accused to compel compounding unilaterally. The Court also noted that later decisions of co-equal strength which did not refer to the earlier binding view could not displace it. On the facts, the proposed payment was found inadequate after a long lapse of time and the complainant was unwilling to consent.

Conclusion: The application for compounding could not be allowed without the complainant's consent, and the refusal to permit compounding was upheld.

Ratio Decidendi: Compounding of an offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act cannot be compelled unilaterally by the accused; absent complainant consent, the Court may exercise discretion only where the complainant has been duly compensated and the case warrants closure in the interests of justice.

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