Delhi High Court Deprecates Lodging Of FIRs With Inflated Allegations, Says Criminal Justice System No Tool To Settle Personal Scores

The Delhi High Court has deprecated the practice of lodging FIRs with inflated allegations, underscoring that criminal justice system cannot be used to settle personal scores.

Justice Amit Mahajan said that parties must be conscious that initiation of criminal proceedings carries serious consequences and must not be undertaken lightly or on the spur of anger or ill-advice.

“This Court finds it necessary to reiterate that the criminal justice system cannot be used as a tool for settling personal scores. Lodging FIRs with inflated allegations, particularly invoking serious sections without adequate basis, not only undermines the purpose of criminal law but leads to prolonged hostility, avoidable litigation, and wastage of judicial time. Such practice, unfortunately not uncommon, is strongly deprecated,” the Court said.

Justice Mahajan quashed a 2016 FIR alleging assault and sexual harassment against a woman by her neighbours, after noting that the complainant had admitted to exaggerating the allegations and both sides had amicably settled their dispute.

It was alleged that the petitioners, who were neighbours of the complainant, had an altercation with her, allegedly touched her inappropriately and caused injuries to her and her aunt while they were going to market.

The complainant woman said that in the FIR, exaggerated allegations were levelled by her due to ill-advice given at that stage to her and the FIR was lodged only due to a misunderstanding.

She stated that the parties were neighbours and the matter was settled and that she did not have any remaining grievance against the petitioners.

The Petitioners said that due to prior animosity and a misunderstanding between the parties, they had also filed a cross FIR, only as a counterblast to the FIR against them.

Allowing the plea, the Court said that there was animosity between the parties which escalated into an altercation on the date of incident.

It said that not only the FIR in question was lodged with allegations that the complainant herself admitted were exaggerated and made under ill-advice, but the petitioners also filed a counter-FIR, which they conceded was likewise an exaggerated reaction and a counterblast.

“The existence of such cross-cases, both arising out of the same neighbourhood discord, further demonstrates that the criminal law machinery was invoked with more passion than prudence,” the Court said.

It added that continuation of the proceedings would amount to sheer abuse of the process of Court, that too when the case was pending since 2016 and the charges had yet not been framed.

“Hence, this Court feels that no useful purpose would be served by keeping the dispute alive and continuation of the proceedings would only cause ill will to fester between the parties and undue harassment especially since the parties have now settled their disputes. I am of the considered opinion that it is a fit case to exercise discretionary jurisdiction under Section 528 of the BNSS,” the Court said.

Title: SANTOSH YADAV & ANR v. THE STATE OF NCT OF DELHI & ANR

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