Ravi Nath Verma, J. - (1.) THE moot question, which has come up for consideration in this writ petition, is as to whether when the entire dispute is commercial in nature relating to purchase of land and payment thereof and when the parties have compromised the case, the continuation of the criminal proceeding is an abuse of the process of law?
(2.) THE details of the facts are not required to be enumerated in different paragraphs rather a brief statement of the facts will suffice. The prosecution case, which was instituted on the basis of a complaint filed by the complainant (respondent No. 2 herein) Braj Mohan Kumar Singh, is that the complainant/respondent No. 2 booked one A -Type residential bungalow on a consideration amount of Rs. 16.35 Lakhs in the Housing Colony of M/s. K.K. Co -ordinance in which the petitioner No. 1 was the Managing Director and his son -petitioner No. 2 was his partner and the complainant paid the said amount between the period 18.08.2009 to 31.07.2011 on the assurance of the present petitioners to complete and handover the possession within 6 to 10 months but when even after lapse of about four months of deposit of booking amount, the possession of the bungalow was not handed over, a legal notice was sent to the petitioners upon which they abused the complainant/respondent No. 2 on phone and also threatened him with dire consequence. It is also alleged that intention of the accused -petitioners since beginning was to cheat the complainant -respondent No. 2 and dishonestly misappropriate the entire money. They have also criminally breached the trust of respondent No. 2 by dishonestly misappropriating the amount of 10.35 Lakhs entrusted to them. Accordingly, the first information report was lodged being Chas P.S. Case No. 168 of 2014 corresponding to G.R. No. 1068 of 2014 registered under Sections 420/406/506/120 -B of the Indian Penal Code and the same is pending in the court of learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Bokaro. Learned counsel for the petitioners submitted that after filing of the aforesaid case, the parties have now settled their dispute outside the court and filed a joint compromise petition in the court of A.C.J.M., Bokaro and also filed a petition to grant them permission to file the compromise, but the court below has not passed any order on the compromise petition on the ground that since after investigation, the police has not submitted the charge sheet and the cognizance has not been taken of the offences, no order can be passed at this stage. Learned counsel further submitted that since no cognizance has been taken, the trial court refused to exercise its power under Section 320 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (hereinafter referred to as 'the Code') but as the offences alleged and the provisions of law in which the case has been instituted are all compoundable, it is a mere wastage of Court's valuable time and the wastage of time of Investigating Officer, hence his prayer is to allow this writ petition in terms of the compromise between the parties and the subsequent proceedings be quashed in the ends of justice.
(3.) LEARNED counsel representing the respondent No. 2 fairly submitted that since the parties have settled their dispute outside the court and have filed a joint compromise petition, it would be sheer wastage of time of the Courts and Investigating Officer. By filing counter affidavit, learned counsel admitted the factum of compromise and in paragraph 3 of the said affidavit respondent No. 2 has stated that he has received the whole amount of Rs. 10,35,000/ - from the petitioners and he has no grievance against them.;