- (1.) The case set up in the FIR lodged by the informant / respondent no. is that he in the capacity of Managing Director of Solitare Food Pvt. Ltd (for short the Company) entered into an agreement on 4.2.2013 with the petitioners for purchase of land for total sale consideration of Rs.2.05 Cr. for which payments were made by way of cash and RTGS upto 5.4.2013 but as sale deed could not be executed, the petitioners returned a sum of Rs.99 lacs to the informant upto 19.3.2015, leaving an2 unpaid balance of Rs.1.06 Cr. for which the petitioners executed a sale deed in favour of the informant on 15.9.2015 for a sale consideration of Rs.75 lacs, leaving a final unpaid balance of Rs.31 lacs. On repeated persuasion when the said unpaid balance was not paid, the petitioners with a view to harass the informant, filed a suit challenging the sale deed dated 15.9.2015.
(2.) It is submitted on behalf of the petitioners that assuming all the allegations in the FIR to be true, no alleged offence is made out as the dispute is essentially civil in nature, relating to unpaid amount, criminality is deliberately assigned only with a view to extract money. It is further submitted that the parties had trading relationship in which dispute arose wherein the petitioners learnt that the informant has been duping them which led the petitioners to challenge the sale deed dated 15.9.2015.
(3.) Learned AGA opposed the submission on the premise that merely because a civil dispute exists between the parties, is no ground to hold that criminality is not involved, as the matter is pending investigation.;