TARUN KUMAR GUPTA, J. - (1.) THIS is an application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 for quashing of a complaint dated 16th January, 2013 under Section 500/120B/34 Indian Penal Code being Case No. C -993 of 2013 pending in the court of learned Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Calcutta and for other consequential reliefs.
(2.) IT is the case of the petitioners that a long standing dispute was going on between the petitioners in one hand and O.P. No. 2 Company and O.P. No. 3 who was carrying on business at O.P. No. 2 Company's Registered Office at Calcutta on the strength of a power of attorney of Company's Director and Authorized representative Ravindra Maheshwari. Said dispute was going on over the title as well as manner of possession of the building situated at Plot No. 42 and 44 Sunder Nagar, New Delhi. Several civil suits were pending between the parties in the Delhi High Court as well as in the Subordinate Court at Delhi on that score. It is further case that without any title to the property and in violation of the restrain order of the Delhi High Court O.P. No. 2 Company managed to secure a separate electric meter in the ground floor of the property and was also causing problems in regular electric supply to the 1st floor of the property being in possession of the petitioners by tampering the meter illegally. On this score learned counsel of the petitioners sent several legal notices to the O.P. Nos. 2 and 3. One such legal notice was a notice dated 24th of August, 2012 wherein the illegal acts of the O.P. Nos. 2 and 3 were pointed out. In counter blast to the litigations of Delhi the O.P. Nos. 2 and 3 filed a suit being C.S. No. 7 of 2012 against the present petitioners in the Calcutta High Court seeking damages as well as injunction of the circulation of letters dated 06.08.2012, 18.08.2012, 24.08.2012 and 29.04.2012. O.P. Nos. 2 and 3 further filed the present criminal case No. C - 993 of 2013 against the present petitioners in the Court of learned Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Calcutta alleging defamation made by issuing and circulating said legal notice dated 24.08.2012. The allegations in said complaint case alleging defamation were all false and the case should be quashed. Mr. Shiladitya Sanyal appearing for the petitioners submits that sending of legal notice ventilating grievance of the petitioners by their lawyer cannot be a ground for filing a case of defamation. He further submits that on the basis of said legal notice dated 24.08.2012 and other notices a specific suit being Suit No. 436 of 2012 has been filed in the Court of learned Additional District Judge, Saket, New Delhi and as such no complaint alleging contents of said legal notice as defamatory can be permitted to be filed. He next submits that the notice sent to the Calcutta Office of the O.P. No. 2 Company returned unserved and hence there is no cause of action at Calcutta for filing the case of defamation. He prays for quashing the criminal proceeding.
(3.) IN support of his contention he refers the case of M/s. Nishka Properties (Pvt.) Ltd. and anr. vs. State of West Bengal and Anr. reported in (2013) 3 C Cr LR (Cal) 691, Dipankar Bagchi vs. The State of West Bengal & Anr. reported in (2010) 1 C Cr LR (Cal) 403, Rajendra Kumar Sitaram Pande and Ors. vs. Uttam and Anr. reported in (1999) 3 SCC 134.;