VIKRAM BHARGAV Vs. ASHISH PAL KHATRI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this judgment, 1 propose to dispose of Crl. Misc. Nos. 3077-M of 1994 and 3074-M of 1994. The facts of the case have been taken from Crl. Misc. No. 3077-M of 1994.

(2.) THE petitioner, Vikram Bhargav, who is stated to be residing in Delhi, on demand of loan of Rs. 1 lac by the respondent, issued two cheques for Rs. 50,000/-each at Delhi, drawn on Punjab National Bank, Assandh Road, Panipat. The case of the petitioner is that these two cheques were issued not towards discharging any admitted liability but only as a loan on the request of the respondent. It appears that on finding that something was amiss and that the loan advanced to the petitioner was not likely to be refunded, the respondent stopped the payment of these cheques by issuing a letter to the bank. The respondent thereafter issued a legal notice under section 138 (b) of the Negotiable Instruments Act (for short the 'act') Annexure P-3 and on the failure of the petitioner to pay the amount in question, the respondent filed a complaint before the Chief Judicial Magistrate (Annexure P-5 ). The learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Panipat, after recording the preliminary evidence, summoned the petitioner vide order dated 18. 12. 1993 (Annexure P-6 ). Aggrieved by the said order, the petitioner has filed the present petition for quashing the complaint as also the summoning order.

(3.) ON notice to the respondent, a reply has been filed and the broad facts mentioned in the petition have been denied. It has been asserted that the cheques in question were given by way of discharging an admitted liability and the cheques having been dis-honoured despite the legal notice served upon the petitioner, the offence under Section 138 of the Act was made out.