TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2019 (4) TMI 1631
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..... Ram Company. Fire brigade and police were informed, which reached on the spot and fire could be controlled after several hours. The cause of fire was shown as electric short circuit in electric cable. Fire caused damages of stocks, plant and machinery and building. M/s. Ram Company had taken a Standard Fire & Special Perils Policy from M/s. United India Insurance Co. Ltd. M/s. Ram Company had submitted insurance claim on 20.12.2010. Total claim raised by the company was Rs. 3,62,45,114/-. The United India Insurance Co. Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "insurance company") appointed the appellant M/s. Protocol Surveyor and Engineers Private Limited, who is a certified surveyor by Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority. The appellant being Director of M/s. Protocol Surveyor and Engineers Private Limited undertook survey of insurance claim of the company. 3.3 On 04.04.2011, the appellant visited the premises at Kosikala, District Mathura for the purposes of preparing a survey report. Joint Inspection note was prepared on 04.04.2011, for which various documents were asked from the company. After various correspondences, the appellant submitted a final survey report dated 23....
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....I.P.C. In the complaint, allegation was made against the appellant that he alongwith two or three other unknown persons, one of whom was holding a revolver, came to the complainant's house on 02.10.2011 at 7.00 PM and abused him in filthy language and was about to assault him, When some neighbours arrived there, the appellant and two or three other unknown persons fled the spot on their vehicle. On the above application dated 14.11.2011, on the order of the Magistrate, first information report was lodged being F.I.R. No.367 of 2011 under Sections 383, 384, 471, 504 and 506 I.P.C. registered on 24.11.2011. Insurance company by letter dated 12.12.2011 repudiated the claim of M/s. Ram Company. Paragraph Nos. 3, 4 and 5 of the said letter are to the following effect:- "3. That during the course of carrying out survey & assessment of this claim, the overall approach & conduct of the surveyor was found to be satisfactory. 4. That the said surveyors submitted a copy of their Final Survey report No.2010-DEC-131 dated 23 September, 2011 to this office on 27 September, 2011. 5. That after scrutiny of the submitted survey report and in consultation with the technical team of our Head....
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....iled in the High Court, which has been dismissed on 06.02.2017. Aggrieved, by above order, this appeal has been filed. 4. Learned counsel for the appellant in support of this appeal contends that complaint filed by the complainant was nothing but proceeding for harassment of the appellant. The appellant, who was surveyor having given adverse reports regarding the fire claim of the company, the complainant due to annoyance and to teach a lesson to the appellant has filed the complaint. It is submitted that incident is alleged of 02.10.2011 when appellant is claimed to be visited his house and threatened him whereas the complaint in the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate was filed on 14.11.2011, i.e., about more than one month and 12 days, which itself indicate that whole story was concocted to harass the appellant. It is submitted that police after making thorough investigation twice have found no offence committed and has submitted the closure report. It is submitted that ingredients of offence under Sections 504 and 506 are not made out on the reading of the complaints and Chief Judicial Magistrate committed error in rejecting the discharge application. High Court also did not a....
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....nce company, there was no allegation made against the appellant and for the first time in letter dated 19.09.2011 sent by M/s. Ram Company, allegation was made against the appellant that appellant has asked for money for the final survey report, which was submitted by the appellant on 23.09.2011, which was received by insurance company on 27.09.2011. 12. We have noticed above that in the final survey report recommendation has been made to repudiate the claim due to misrepresentation and false declaration made by the appellant, which is breach of policy condition. The incident alleged against the appellant is dated 02.10.2011, i.e., immediately after submission of final survey report. It was only after final survey report submitted by the appellant on 23.09.2011, which was received on 27.09.2011 that the appellant alleged the incident dated 02.10.2011, in which appellant has alleged to have threatened the complainant. It is to be noted that application under Section 156(3) of Cr.P.C. was filed for the first time on 14.11.2011, copies of which is brought as Annexure P-9. The allegation in the complaint against the appellant with regard to incident dated 02.10.2011 are as follows:- ....
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....ph No.10, following principles were noticed:- "10. Thus, on a consideration of the authorities mentioned above, the following principles emerge: (1) That the Judge while considering the question of framing the charges under Section 227 of the Code has the undoubted power to sift and weigh the evidence for the limited purpose of finding out whether or not a prima facie case against the accused has been made out. (2) Where the materials placed before the Court disclose grave suspicion against the accused which has not been properly explained the Court will be fully justified in framing a charge and proceeding with the trial. (3) The test to determine a prima facie case would naturally depend upon the facts of each case and it is difficult to lay down a rule of universal application. By and large however if two views are equally possible and the Judge is satisfied that the evidence produced before him while giving rise to some suspicion but not grave suspicion against the accused, he will be fully within his right to discharge the accused. (4) That in exercising his jurisdiction under Section 227 of the Code the Judge which under the present Code is a senior and experie....
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....not be done to take undue advantage in a criminal court as if somebody is determined to settle the scores." 19. It is, thus, clear that while considering the discharge application, the Court is to exercise its judicial mind to determine whether a case for trial has been made out or not. It is true that in such proceedings, the Court is not to hold the mini trial by marshalling the evidence. 20. After noticing the nature of jurisdiction to be exercised by the Court at the time of discharge, we now revert back to the facts of the present case, where taking an allegation of complaint as correct on the face of it, whether offences under Sections 504 and 506 is made out, is a question to be answered. 21. We need to notice Sections 503, 504 and 506 for appreciating the issues, which has come up for consideration, which are to the following effect:- "503. Criminal intimidation.-Whoever threatens another with any injury to his person, reputation or property, or to the person or reputation of any one in whom that person is interested, with intent to cause alarm to that person, or to cause that person to do any act which he is not legally bound to do, or to omit to do any act which ....
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....tions made out in the complaint and has only to prima facie satisfy whether there are sufficient grounds to proceed against the accused and it is not the province of the Magistrate to enquire into a detailed discussion on the merits or demerits of the case. The scope of enquiry under Section 202 is extremely limited in the sense that the Magistrate, at this stage, is expected to examine prima facie the truth or falsehood of the allegations made in the complaint. The Magistrate is not expected to embark upon a detailed discussion of the merits or demerits of the case, but only consider the inherent probabilities apparent on the statement made in the complaint. In Nagawwa v. Veeranna Shivalingappa Konjalgi, (1976) 3 SCC 736, this Court held that once the Magistrate has exercised his discretion in forming an opinion that there is ground for proceeding, it is not for the Higher Courts to substitute its own discretion for that of the Magistrate. The Magistrate has to decide the question purely from the point of view of the complaint, without at all adverting to any defence that the accused may have." 23. In paragraph No.13 of the judgment, this Court has noticed the ingredients of Sec....
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....mplainant to cause that person to do or omit to do any work. Mere expression of any words without any intention to cause alarm would not be sufficient to bring in the application of this section. But material has to be placed on record to show that the intention is to cause alarm to the complainant. From the facts and circumstances of the case, it appears that there was no intention on the part of the appellants to cause alarm in the mind of the second respondent causing obstruction in discharge of his duty. As far as the comments posted on Facebook are concerned, it appears that it is a public forum meant for helping the public and the act of the appellants posting a comment on Facebook may not attract ingredients of criminal intimidation in Section 503 IPC." 25. In the above case, allegation was that appellant had abused the complainant. The Court held that the mere fact that the allegation that accused had abused the complainant does not satisfy the ingredients of Section 506. 26. Now, we revert back to the allegations in the complaint against the appellant. The allegation is that appellant with two or three other unknown persons, one of whom was holding a revolver, came to ....