TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2019 (4) TMI 1625
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....larly one under the aegis of the court, should be permitted or encouraged to be availed of for bringing about such settlement as may possibly not be taken by the court to be a just or sufficient reason for such intervention, this having regard to the nature of the crime involved. In the course of the scrutiny, some concerns as to the manner in which cases involving grave and serious crimes have been dealt with by the criminal courts have also come up for consideration and directions. BACKGROUND FACTS The case of rape and sexual assaults 2. On 15.11.2018, a petition under Section 482 Cr. PC had come up for consideration before this court, it being Crl. MC 5731/2018 titled Manmeetsingh and Ors vs. State (NCT of Delhi) and Anr., wherein prayer was made for quashing of the proceedings arising out of first information report (FIR) no.88/2017 of police station Hauz Khas involving offences punishable under Sections 376 / 377 / 354 / 506 / 509 / 323 / 341/ 34 Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC), reliance being placed on a settlement agreement dated 13.09.2018 entered upon by the parties to the said case at Delhi High Court Mediation and Conciliation Centre. As per the said settlement....
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.....10.2004 by the police in FIR no.45/2003 shows that the complaint had been lodged by the representative of the bank on 05.06.2003 about a large number of instances having come forth in which domestic as well as international credit cards had been counterfeited, by skimming technique which involves copying of electronic data from genuine cards at the time of their use in the normal course, stolen data having been written on blank plastic cards. He informed the police that the bank had been investigating such frauds and with the help of a secret source had come across material showing involvement of certain named persons (petitioners) in such activity. The bank had specific information that some members of the gang would be coming to S.N. Market on 05.06.2003 to use such forged cards on the swipe machines of the merchants. 7. It is the case of the prosecution that the police had arranged a trap and, at the instance of an informer, petitioners Dinesh Gupta, Rajiv Arora and Adil Khan were intercepted. Their interrogation and searches statedly led to recovery of a large number of credit cards suspected to be counterfeit, the later investigation confirming the same to be forged credit....
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....ections 409, 420, 120-B, 34 IPC. 10. The charge-sheet dated 10.12.2003 submitted on 22.12.2003, upon conclusion of investigation into FIR no.53/2003, also reveals that it had also been registered on the complaint dated 08.07.2003 of the representative of the bank. It concerns similar misuse of EDC machine installed by the bank in the premises of a trader M/s. Akshan Telecom, a proprietary concern of the petitioner Akhil Arora, in Ghaffar Market, Karol Bagh, New Delhi, forged credit cards recovered from petitioners Dinesh Gupta, Rajiv Arora and Yogesh Mahajan (arrested during investigation of previous two cases) having been deployed, they having been prepared with the help of stolen / skimmed data of various genuine card holders, information in which regard was also found contained in the computer of petitioner Charanjit Singh Chadha @ Shampy who had procured it from foreign lands. The loss caused on account of misuse through the establishment of Akhil Arora was assessed to be in the sum of Rs. 7 Lakh approximately. The police sought prosecution of petitioners (of Crl. MC 5768/2018) for offences under Sections 420, 120-B, 34 IPC. 11. The FIR no.54/2003 was also registered on 0....
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.... office using vulgar language which resulted in a number of lady workers leaving the job, he being constrained to shift to a new office and obtaining a new telephone number. 15. The complainant suspected the involvement of second petitioner in these acts. Though the Cyber Crime Cell was able to delete the fake IDs, new ID was found to have been generated, the inquiries into its origin revealing the involvement of the first petitioner. 16. The investigation has statedly brought out, inter alia, that a number of fake e-mail IDs have also been created, amongst others, by the two petitioners, they being in use of a number of internet protocol addresses. Evidence showing complicity of the two petitioners (of Crl. MC 5995/2018) in offences under Sections 66-A and 67 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 is stated to have been gathered, the charge-sheet accordingly seeking their prosecution, the role of certain others also having come up but they being untraceable. 17. The counsel on both sides confirmed at the hearing that the question of charge has not been considered in this case till date. The petitioners seek an end to criminal case on basis of settlement through mediation....
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..... Concerned court on the next date. 4. That on receipt of the entire settlement amount on realization of the bank instruments afore-detailed delivered by the respondents today, the complainant / HDFC Bank Ltd. and of course its officers do not want to further proceed with the cases on their merits against the respondents / accused persons. 5. That in the eventuality of the respondents / accused persons approaching the Hon'ble High Court for quashing the cases against them, the complainant / HDFC Bank Ltd. and its officers shall co-operate by swearing affidavits, appearing in the court and making statements." (emphasis supplied) 19. The judicial officer who is Mediation In-charge of the aforesaid Mediation Centre has made an endorsement on the said settlement agreement to the following effect : "The above terms of settlement have been arrived at, verified and signed by the parties voluntarily after examining all probabilities. Let the parties appear in Ld. Concerned court on date fixed i.e. 16.07.2018 for conformation and settlement...." 20. As noted earlier, the prayer for quashing (in Crl. MC 5731/2018 of Manmeet Singh and Ors.), withdr....
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....ences arose between the parties and on the complaint of the first party an FIR No.454/13 PS Amar Colony, under Sections 66A/67/67A under Information Technology Act read with Section 34 IPC as registered against the second party and thereafter the charge sheet was filed before Ms. Ankita Lal Ld. Metropolitan Magistrate-08, SE, Saket Courts, New Delhi by the police against the second party, which was registered as Cr. Cases 256/2/201696219/2016. xxx 5. The parties hereto confirm and declare that they have voluntarily and of their own free will arrived at the said Settlement Agreement in the presence of the Mediator. 6. The following settlement has been arrived at between the parties hereto : a. It is agreed between the parties that they will try to end the litigation pending between them and accordingly, the second party agreed to give a sum of Rs. 2,00,000/- (Rupees Two Lakhs only) to the first party as compensation towards the satisfaction of their all claims, disputes, differences and grievances and the same is acceptable to the first party. b. The second party shall file the petition before the Hon'ble High Court of Delhi for quashing ....
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....four cases have "undertaken to collectively pay" to the complainant Bank a total sum of Rs. 12 lacs "in full and final settlement of their money and issues involved...". 9. The respondent State through Additional Public Prosecutor has strongly objected to the prayer in the petition referring to the decision of the three Hon'ble Judges of the Supreme Court reported as "Parbatbhai Aahir alias Parbatbhai Bhimsinhbhai Karmur and Others v. State of Gujarat and Another, (2017) 9 SCC 641". He submitted that the investigation has brought out a deeprooted criminal conspiracy wherein certain credit cards were cloned, stolen data having been used with design to commit such frauds, a large number of public persons having also been thereby adversely affected, the case also involving the element of criminal breach of trust by the bank and its employees. 10. As was pointed out by the learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the State in the course of hearing, only yesterday, i.e., 15.11.2018 another petition, also invoking power and jurisdiction of this court under Section 482 Cr.P.C.had come up, it being Crl.M.C.5731/2018, titled Manmeet Singh & Ors. Vs. State (NCT of Delhi) & ....
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....so deals with public money. It requires inquiry as to the justifications with which it would agree to participate in such process of negotiated settlement in cases involving serious criminal breach of trust and cheating. ..." 14. The State shall file a status report in respect of four aforementioned FIRs, also explaining the reasons why the case(s) are still at the initial stage of the judicial process, even fifteen years after the charge-sheet having been submitted. 15. The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, New Delhi is directed to send a report as to what have been the reasons for delay in the progress of the cases after filing of the charge sheet in December, 2003. He shall depute the court clerk who is custodian of the case files to remain present with trial court records for perusal on next date. 16. Copies of this order shall also be sent to the Mediation In-charge, New Delhi at Patiala House Courts and the Organizing Secretary, Delhi High Court Mediation & Conciliation Centre for their comments, if any, in the matter. xxx" (emphasis supplied) THE PROTRACTED CRIMINAL PROCESS 26. The trial court records in all the four cases of credit ....
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....Section 120-B IPC. Similar proceedings were recorded on 08.07.2015 in the cases relating to FIR no.53/2003 and also FIR no.54/2003. In the latter case, however, formal charge could not be framed since one accused was absent. Subsequently, duress process had to be issued to secure the presence of the absentee. Later proceedings show that the trial court forgot that the charge had already been conceded to be made out. The case was again taken to arguments on the question of charge as indeed for exploring chances for settlement. The confusion noticed in the context of FIR no.45/2003 also prevailed in this case as the case was taken to the stage of prosecution evidence, by order dated 12.01.2018, though formal charge had not been framed, the settlement agreement dated 03.07.2018 having eventually derailed the process. RESPONSES 29. The Chief Metropolitan Magistrate who presides over the court which is in seisin of the four criminal cases that are subject matter of the first four petitions has explained his position, based on proceedings in criminal case arising out of FIR No.47/03, by report dated 10.12.2018 thus : "... the reasons for long pendency of the case after the....
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....ion talks were going on since 08.08.2014 between the parties. The heavy pendency of cases which are more than 10 years old has also caused delay in the disposal of maters because as per direction, 10 years old case are to be disposed off on priority basis. The court is having heavy pendency of cases including more than 10 years old cases which are 205 in number and in each case the record is too voluminous. However, undersigned is giving short dates in those matters for expeditious disposal in terms of directions of Hon'ble High Court of Delhi for expeditious disposal of old cases. Initially the total pendency of more than 10 years old cases was 310 out of which 105 old cases have been disposed off till date. Undersigned is also looking after the administrative work and other miscellaneous work. The present case in hand also falls in the category of 10 years old matters ..." (emphasis supplied) 30. The judicial officer who has been working as In-charge of the Mediation Centre of Patiala House Courts, by his report dated 30.11.2018, has opted to term the settlement of credit card fraud cases as "imprudence", which was regrettable. 31. Mr. Amit Sahni, the ....
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....ya Pradesh vs. Laxmi Narayan and Others in Criminal Appeal No.349/2019 (with Criminal Appeal No.350/2019), decided on 05.03.2019 and decision of a division bench of this court in Dayawati vs. Yogesh Kumar Gosain, 2017 (243) DLT 117, has, inter alia, submitted thus : "2.Out of the alternative dispute mechanisms adopted by this country's legal system, the mediation movement as a reliable mechanism has gained both acceptability and popularity. Mediation is an assisted negotiation process aimed at allowing parties to settle their disputes amicably. Mediation enables warring parties to sit across the table and negotiate. 3. It is submitted that the process of mediation commences pursuant to the Court order referring the parties for exploring the possibility of settlement through mediation process. Parties are being referred to Delhi High Court Mediation and Conciliation Centre, Samadhan, for resolution of their disputes of all kinds be it Civil or Criminal. The Court references for mediation are made on joint requests or with the consent of the parties. In cases where the settlement is arrived at between the parties, terms of such settlement are finalized and signed by....
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....of the effective tools of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanism. The provision contained in Section 89 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (CPC), reinserted by Act 46 of 1999 (brought in force with effect from 01.07.2002), gives it statutory recognition, the civil court being obliged to refer the disputants before it to such process if "there exist elements of a settlement which may be acceptable" the court required to "formulate the terms of settlement" modifying the same, if required, in light of observations of the parties thereto and if such process were to succeed to "effect a compromise between the parties" and to "follow such procedure as may be prescribed". The general scope of Section 89 CPC and the question as to whether such provision empowers the court to so refer the parties "without the consent of both parties" had arisen for consideration by the Supreme Court in decision reported as Afcons Infrastructure Ltd. Vs. Cherian Varkey Construction Co. (P) Ltd., (2010) 8 SCC 24. The court embarked upon a detailed scrutiny of the subject including on the question as to whether reference to ADR process is mandatory and, while answering the said question in the affirm....
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....and the conditions subject to which such request may be entertained as indeed the person who has the authority to compound the offence with the offender. There are two broad classes of compoundable offences; first, where it is left to the discretion of the parties and, the second, where the compounding is subject to discretion of the court. 38. Aside from offences under general law (IPC), certain special statutes also provide for crimes which may be compounded. For illustration, the offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 is compoundable by virtue of Section 147. It is treated as quasi civil in nature. In Kaushalya Devi Masand vs. Roopkishore Khore, 2011 4 SCC 593, the distinction between traditional criminal offences and the said offence under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act (generally known as "cheque bouncing case") was commented upon thus :- "11. Having considered the submissions made on behalf of the parties, we are of the view that the gravity of a complaint under the Negotiable Instruments Act cannot be equated with an offence under the provisions of the Penal Code, 1860 or other criminal offences. An offence under Section ....
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....n that the parties have amiably resolved to end the dispute. It is in this context that the parties have been taking the matter, with or without the intervention of the court, to ADR mechanisms, particularly the process of mediation, the settlement reached there being then brought before the High Court with the prayer under Section 482 Cr.P.C. for the criminal proceedings to be quashed. 42. In State of Karnataka Vs. M. Devendrappa, (2002) 3 SCC 89, a bench of three Hon'ble Judges of the Supreme Court had examined the width and scope of the jurisdiction of the High Court for bringing to an end a criminal action by quashing the case, inter alia, under Section 482 Cr.P.C., in light of past precedents and observed that such jurisdiction emanated from its inherent power to bring about justice, explaining it thus:- "6. ... It envisages three circumstances under which the inherent jurisdiction may be exercised, namely, (i) to give effect to an order under the Code, (ii) to prevent abuse of the process of court, and (iii) to otherwise secure the ends of justice. It is neither possible nor desirable to lay down any inflexible rule which would govern the exercise of inherent juri....
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....at in exercise of this "inherent" and "wholesome power", the touchstone is as to whether "the ends of justice so require", it was observed thus : "10. ... that in a criminal case, the veiled object behind a lame prosecution, the very nature of the material on which the structure of the prosecution rests and the like would justify the High Court in quashing the proceeding in the interest of justice and that the ends of justice are higher than the ends of mere law though justice had got to be administered according to laws made by the legislature. ...that the compelling necessity for making these observations is that without a proper realization of the object and purpose of the provision which seeks to save the inherent powers of the High Court to do justice between the State and its subjects, it would be impossible to appreciate the width and contours of that salient jurisdiction." (emphasis supplied) 44. It was further noted :- "What would happen to the trial of the case where the wife does not support the imputations made in the FIR of the type in question. As earlier noticed, now she has filed an affidavit that the FIR was registered at her instance due to....
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....hat something else will be supplied by necessary intendment. Ex debito justitiae is inbuilt in such exercise; the whole idea is to do real, complete and substantial justice for which it exists. The power possessed by the High Court under Section 482 of the Code is of wide amplitude but requires exercise with great caution and circumspection. (emphasis supplied) 47. In Gian Singh (supra), the Supreme Court contrasted the request for quashing of criminal proceedings on the basis of settlement with the possibility of compounding of an offence and observed thus :- "57. Quashing of offence or criminal proceedings on the ground of settlement between an offender and victim is not the same thing as compounding of offence. They are different and not interchangeable. Strictly speaking, the power of compounding of offences given to a court under Section 320 is materially different from the quashing of criminal proceedings by the High Court in exercise of its inherent jurisdiction. In compounding of offences, power of a criminal court is circumscribed by the provisions contained in Section 320 and the court is guided solely and squarely thereby while, on the other hand, the form....
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....nd without any pressure, we hold that for the purpose of securing ends of justice, Section 320 of the Code would not be a bar to the exercise of power of quashing of FIR, complaint or the subsequent criminal proceedings. 16. There has been an outburst of matrimonial disputes in recent times. The institution of marriage occupies an important place and it has an important role to play in the society. Therefore, every effort should be made in the interest of the individuals in order to enable them to settle down in life and live peacefully. If the parties ponder over their defaults and terminate their disputes amicably by mutual agreement instead of fighting it out in a court of law, in order to do complete justice in the matrimonial matters, the courts should be less hesitant in exercising their extraordinary jurisdiction. It is trite to state that the power under Section 482 should be exercised sparingly and with circumspection only when the Court is convinced, on the basis of material on record, that allowing the proceedings to continue would be an abuse of process of court or that the ends of justice require that the proceedings ought to be quashed..." (emphasis suppli....
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....stage and particularly, before they take up the complaint for hearing, refer the parties to mediation centre if they feel that there exist elements of settlement and both the parties are willing. However, they should take care to see that in this exercise, rigour, purport and efficacy of Section 498-A IPC is not diluted. Needless to say that the discretion to grant or not to grant bail is not in any way curtailed by this direction. It will be for the court concerned to work out the modalities taking into consideration the facts of each case. 46.3. All mediation centres shall set up pre-litigation desks/clinics; give them wide publicity and make efforts to settle matrimonial disputes at pre-litigation stage." (emphasis supplied) 51. In Narinder Singh (supra), the principles which are to guide the High Court "in giving adequate treatment to the settlement between the parties" where exercising power under Section 482 Cr.P.C. for quashing the proceedings or refusing to accept the settlement with direction to continue with the criminal proceedings were summed up as would be reiterated in later judgment in Parbatbhai Aahir (supra). 52. In sharp contrast to above line of....
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....jurisdiction of the High Court to quash a First Information Report or a criminal proceeding on the ground that a settlement has been arrived at between the offender and the victim is not the same as the invocation of jurisdiction for the purpose of compounding an offence. While compounding an offence, the power of the court is governed by the provisions of Section 320 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973. The power to quash under Section 482 is attracted even if the offence is non-compoundable. 16.3 In forming an opinion whether a criminal proceeding or complaint should be quashed in exercise of its jurisdiction under Section 482, the High Court must evaluate whether the ends of justice would justify the exercise of the inherent power. 16.4 While the inherent power of the High Court has a wide ambit and plenitude it has to be exercised (i) to secure the ends of justice, or (ii) to prevent an abuse of the process of any court. 16.5 The decision as to whether a complaint or First Information Report should be quashed on the ground that the offender and victim have settled the dispute, revolves ultimately on the facts and circumstances of each case and no ....
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....xt of a case involving offences of attempt to commit murder punishable under Section 307 IPC. The Supreme Court while reiterating the principles as culled out above has ruled thus:- "31.... iv) offences under Section 307 IPC and the Arms Act etc. would fall in the category of heinous and serious offences and therefore are to be treated as crime against the society and not against the individual alone, and therefore, the criminal proceedings for the offence under Section 307 IPC and/or the Arms Act etc. which have a serious impact on the society cannot be quashed in exercise of powers under Section 482 of the Code, on the ground that the parties have resolved their entire dispute amongst themselves. However, the High Court would not rest its decision merely because there is a mention of Section 307 IPC in the FIR or the charge is framed under this provision. It would be open to the High Court to examine as to whether incorporation of Section 307 IPC is there for the sake of it or the prosecution has collected sufficient evidence, which if proved, would lead to framing the charge under Section 307 IPC. For this purpose, it would be open to the High Court to go by th....
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....hough, for the latter category, such power is to be "exercised sparingly and with caution". (iv). If the criminal case has "overwhelmingly and predominantly civil character", particularly if it arises out of "commercial" (financial, mercantile, partnership or such other) transaction - and this would include the "cheque bouncing cases" under Section 138 N.I. Act - or "matrimonial dispute" or "family dispute", genuine resolution on equitable terms, in entirety, by the parties should result in criminal proceedings being quashed. (v). Since the institution of marriage has an important role to play in the society, the court is to make every effort to encourage the parties to terminate such discord amicably and if it appears that elements of settlement exist, and the parties are willing, they are to be directed to the process of mediation to explore the possibility of settlement, it being desirable to do so even at the "pre-litigation stage". (vi). While examining the prayer for quashing of a non-compoundable offence, on the basis of settlement of the dispute between the wrongful doer and the victim, the High Court is to bear in mind as to whether the possibili....
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....een coming up before the courts, from time to time, as to the legality of referral of a criminal compoundable case, (such as the one under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act) to mediation, applicability of the rules of mediation to such process, enforceability of the settlement which is reached through the process of mediation etc. It is against the backdrop of such issues that a reference was made by a Metropolitan Magistrate. The reference was answered by a division bench of this court, by judgment dated 17.10.2017, reported as Dayawati vs. Yogesh Kumar Gosain, 2017 SCC Online Del 11032 : (2017) 243 DLT 117 (DB), thus:. "58. In para 18 of Afcons, the Supreme Court has given illustrations of certain categories of cases that were normally not considered suitable for alternate dispute resolution processes. Prosecution for criminal offences has been mentioned as not suitable. The judgment also notes that the categorization enumerated is merely illustrative and not inflexible. As the legal validity of mediation in criminal compoundable cases was not specifically in question, there is thus no authoritative judicial pronouncement prohibiting the same. x x x ....
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....as well as "all other powers enabling the High Court" in this behalf. The Rules therefore, clearly provide for mediation not only in civil suits, but also to "proceeding pending in the High Court of Delhi or in any court subordinate to the High Court of Delhi". So far as Delhi is concerned, these rules would apply to mediation in a matter referred by the court concerned with a criminal case as well as proceedings under Section 138 of the NI Act." (emphasis supplied) OPINION OF COURT 59. In the considered opinion of this court, there is no bar to the disputant parties to be referred by the court to mediation, even in cases involving such non-compoundable offences the action in which context can be lawfully terminated by approaching the High Court under Section 482 Cr. PC, provided the parties are willing and there exists an element of settlement. After all, amicable settlement restores peace and tranquillity not only to the parties but also to the society at large. The concern to be addressed, however, is as to whether the court is to make a reference of a criminal case to the process of mediation merely for the asking or should there be scrutiny before such reference; and ....
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....ich follow therefrom) unless a case is made out, within the four corners of law, for such process to be brought to an end midway on account of settlement, either through the route of compounding or by intervention of the High Court under Section 482 Cr.P.C. 63. When parties are being referred by the Court to mediation, against the backdrop of criminal charge, they expect and assume that the Court has examined the matter in proper perspective to satisfy itself that there exist elements of settlement and also, and this is important here, that should they be able to reach a settlement, the Court will have the competence and authority in law to act upon it so as to bring the criminal proceedings to an end. Similarly, when the parties reach the court-annexed mediation centre, having been advised that such institutions could be trusted to take the endeavour forward, because it is controlled by persons trained in law, they are led to believe that the process of mediation entered upon under the guidance of trained lawyers, and judges, would save them from the vagaries of criminal law process (inquiry, investigation or trial), should they be inclined for give-and take and reach a settlem....
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.... consider as to whether a settlement reached by such effort would be acceptable for the criminal process to be brought to an end. 68. The rules of mediation do not limit the process to the case in the context of which the parties have been referred. It is often the scenario that the dispute in which the parties are embroiled goes beyond the contours of the case under reference, its branches having resulted in other litigation. It is but natural that when the parties sit across the table in the hope of bringing peace to themselves by amicable resolution, in the spirit of give and take, they want and expect all cases to come to an end. To put it simply, the parties hope that the mediation will bring an end to the litigation in entirety. 69. The initial reference to the mediation may be in a case where there would be no difficulty in the court accepting the resolution and acting upon it. To illustrate, reference of a summary suit seeking recovery of money due in commercial transaction on the basis of acknowledgement by a cheque issued (but which was dishonoured upon presentation) would be generally encouraged and once the parties have arrived at a compromise, the court would ord....
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....al case and satisfy himself as to the possibility of assisting the parties to such a settlement as would be acceptable to the court, bearing in mind the law governing the compounding of the offences or exercise of power of the High Court under Section 482 Cr.P.C. For this, an institutional mechanism has to be created in the mediation centres so that there is consistency and uniformity in approach. The scrutiny in above nature would also need to be undertaken, as the mediation process continues, should any such criminal case, as mentioned above, be brought on the table by the parties (for being included in the settlement), as takes it beyond the case initially referred. (iii) The system of vetting, at the conclusion of the mediation process, needs to be institutionalised so that before a settlement vis-a-vis a criminal case is formally executed by the parties, satisfaction is reached that the criminal charge involved is one which is either compoundable or one respecting which there would be no inhibition felt by the High court in exercise of its inherent power under Section 482 Cr.P.C., bearing in mind the relevant jurisprudence. 72. It is hoped and expected that the cri....
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....ere cannot be a premium on dishonesty. The gravity and seriousness of the offences, the conduct of the accused persons and the impact on society are good reasons to reject the settlement as illconceived and unworthy. 76. The fifth case involving pornographic and obscene calls and offences under Information Technology Act similarly is one which falls foul of the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court consistent vis-a-vis the exercise of power under Section 482 Cr.P.C. The Metropolitan Magistrate, making reference to mediation, ignored the fact that this Court in that very case had declined to quash the case, by decision dated 24.04.2017 (Crl.M.C. 1144/2017). Neither the parties nor their counsel shared with the mediator the earlier order (of this Court) rejecting the move. The withholding of such material information from the mediator was dishonest and will have to be condemned in strongest terms. The fact remains that the case involving the element of "mental depravity" cannot be quashed on settlement. 77. Thus, all the five petitions are liable to be dismissed. Ordered accordingly. DEALING WITH OTHER CONCERNS 78. A criminal court cannot apply the procedure mindlessl....
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....criminal jurisdiction. The only way forward is a serious and sincere effort on each and every date of hearing to take the matter to the next logical stage under the prescribed criminal procedure. It is in that context that the manner of handling of these cases has come out to be more of a lip service presenting models which cannot be permitted to be followed. 83. As is acknowledged by the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (in his report), he and his predecessors could not take up these cases on innumerable dates also for the reason of pre-occupation with administrative work. This is not proper. No judge can shun judicial work during court hours for administrative work. The judicial business remains the priority. 84. The court was informed at the hearing that criminal complaints under Section 138 Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 have inundated the courts of Metropolitan Magistrates and Civil Judges all over Delhi, particularly at New Delhi sessions division. These cases have rendered civil litigation and serious criminal cases secondary, which is not healthy. The move in 2008 to create special courts at Dwarka Court Complex for such cases filed by financial institutions had proved....