MEHTA,J - (1.) THE instant revision petition has been preferred by the petitioner complainant being aggrieved of the order dated 20.9.2011 passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Merta, in revision whereby the learned revisional Court whilst reversing the order dated 10.6.2011 passed by the ACJM, Merta, has directed the trial Court to reconsider the matter after providing an opportunity of hearing to the petitioner as well as the respondent - accused persons.
(2.) THE grievance of the learned counsel for the petitioner is that the learned Magistrate had taken cognizance against the respondents No.2 and 3. They challenged the order of the learned Magistrate by filing a revision and the revisional Court whilst setting aside the order passed by the learned Magistrate, has directed the learned Magistrate to reconsider the matter but at the same time has observed that the accused as well as complainant shall be entitled to be heard by the Magistrate. It is submitted by the learned counsel for the petitioner that at the stage when the Magistrate is to consider the case for the purpose of proceeding on a complaint, the accused persons have no right of hearing and it is only the complainant, who is entitled to be heard at that stage. He, therefore, submits that the order passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Merta, deserves to be modified and now a direction be issued that the learned Magistrate should pass an appropriate order after hearing the petitioner only in the matter. To this suggestion, learned counsel for the respondents No.2 and 3 also does not object and rightly so.
(3.) THE Hon'ble Apex Court in the celebrated case of Bhagwant Singh vs. Commissioner of Police & Anr., reported in AIR 1985 SC 1285 considering aspect regarding he right available to the aggrieved person for being provided with an opportunity of being heard, when he decides that there is no ground to proceed upon a report forwarded to him u/S. 173(2)(ii) Cr.P.C. held as below: "It will be seen from the provisions to which we have referred in the preceding paragraph that when an informant lodges the First Information Report with the officer in charge of a police station, he does not fade away with the lodging of the First Information Report. He is very much concerned with what action is initiated by the officer in charge of the police station on the basis of the First Information Report lodged by him. No sooner he lodges the First Information Report, a copy of it has to be supplied to him, free of cost, under subsection (2) of Sec. 154. If, notwithstanding the First Information Report, the officer in charge of a police station decides not to investigate the case on the view that there is no sufficient ground for entering on an investigation, he is required under sub -sec. (2) of Sec. 157 to notify to the informant the fact that he is not going to investigate the case or cause it to be investigated. Then again, the officer in charge of a police station is obligated under sub -sec. (2)(ii) of Sec. 173 to communicate the action taken by him to the informant and the report forwarded by him to the Magistrate under sub -sec. (2)(i) has therefore to be supplied by him to the informant. The question immediately arises as to why action taken by he officer in charge of a police station on the First Information Report is required to be communicated and the report forwarded to the Magistrate under sub - sec. (2)(i) of Sec. 173 required to be supplied to the informant. Obviously, the reason is that the informant who sets the machinery of investigation into motion by filing the First Information Report must know what is the result of the investigation initiated on the basis of the First Information Report. The informant having taken the initiative in lodging the First Information Report with a view to initiating investigation by the police for the purpose of ascertaining whether any offence has been committed and, if so, by whom, is vitally interested in the result of the investigation and hence the law requires that the action taken by the officer in charge of a police station on the First Information Report should be communicated to him and the report forwarded by such officer to the Magistrate under sub -section (2)(i) of Section 173 should also be supplied to him. ;