https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=418315 Delay in investigation does not, by itself, justify quashing an FIR under inherent powers where the case concerns alleged manipulation of letters of credit and export-related offences. The court applied the settled position that there is no rigid outer time limit for completing an investigation; delay must be assessed in the factual context, with Article 21 rights balanced against the need for a fair and effective inquiry, especially in serious cross-border economic offences. As the record involved foreign documents, letters rogatory and requests to overseas authorities, and no substantial prejudice was shown, the investigation was treated as still at a crucial stage. The petition to quash was therefore not allowed. en-us Tue, 08 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0530 Mon, 14 Feb 2022 07:18:54 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=418315 Delay in investigation does not, by itself, justify quashing an FIR under inherent powers where the case concerns alleged manipulation of letters of credit and export-related offences. The court applied the settled position that there is no rigid outer time limit for completing an investigation; delay must be assessed in the factual context, with Article 21 rights balanced against the need for a fair and effective inquiry, especially in serious cross-border economic offences. As the record involved foreign documents, letters rogatory and requests to overseas authorities, and no substantial prejudice was shown, the investigation was treated as still at a crucial stage. The petition to quash was therefore not allowed. Case-Laws Customs Tue, 08 Feb 2022 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=418315