https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=167204 Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act applies only where a cheque is issued for discharge of an existing debt or other liability; a cheque given merely as collateral security for a future obligation, when no subsisting liability exists on the date of issue, does not satisfy the statutory ingredients and cannot support criminal liability. The High Court's inherent power under Section 482 CrPC is wide enough to quash a complaint where the allegations on their face do not disclose an offence, even if the petitioners have not yet been formally arraigned as accused. On these principles, the complaint and resulting proceedings were set aside. en-us Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0530 Thu, 01 Jan 2026 19:10:00 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=167204 Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act applies only where a cheque is issued for discharge of an existing debt or other liability; a cheque given merely as collateral security for a future obligation, when no subsisting liability exists on the date of issue, does not satisfy the statutory ingredients and cannot support criminal liability. The High Court's inherent power under Section 482 CrPC is wide enough to quash a complaint where the allegations on their face do not disclose an offence, even if the petitioners have not yet been formally arraigned as accused. On these principles, the complaint and resulting proceedings were set aside. Case-Laws Companies Law Tue, 30 Nov 1999 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=167204