Criminal complaint amendment limits bar substantial changes after cognizance where the accused would suffer prejudice.

A criminal complaint may be amended only to correct clerical, typographical, or other formal defects that do not alter the nature of the complaint or prejudice the accused. Where the complaint has already reached the stage of cognizance and evidence, a proposed amendment that introduces a new factual foundation for the complainant's case is a substantial amendment and is impermissible. Applying that distinction, the Court held that adding material to support the power of attorney holder's knowledge was not a harmless clarification, since it would affect available defences and cause serious prejudice to the accused. The amendment was therefore not allowed.

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Issues: Whether the criminal court could permit amendment of a complaint under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act after cognizance and commencement of evidence, and whether the proposed amendment was a curable formal amendment that caused prejudice to the accused.

Analysis: The governing principle is that a criminal court has no general express power of amendment, but may permit correction of clerical or typographical defects or other easily curable infirmities by a formal amendment, provided the amendment does not alter the nature of the complaint and does not prejudice the accused. The Court applied the distinction drawn in the settled line of authority between a merely formal correction and a substantial amendment. Here, the complaint had already progressed to the stage where cognizance had long been taken and evidence had been recorded. The proposed addition was not a harmless clarification, because it sought to bring in a factual foundation to support the complainant's case regarding the power of attorney holder's knowledge. Allowing such an amendment at that stage would deprive the accused of available defences and would cause serious prejudice.

Conclusion: The amendment could not be allowed, and the order permitting amendment was liable to be set aside.

Ratio Decidendi: A criminal complaint may be amended only to cure a formal or clerical defect that does not prejudice the accused, but a substantial amendment after cognizance that affects the defence or the nature of the complaint is impermissible.

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