'Gross Misuse Of Powers By Police': MP High Court Quashes FIR In Fake Motor Accident Case, Directs DGP To Conduct Inquiry Against Officers

While quashing a FIR in a fake motor accident case, the Madhya Pradesh High Court condemned the act of police officials for misleading the case and fabricating evidences against the litigant to incriminate him in a 'non-existent' case.In doing so, the Court also directed the Director General of Police to inquire whether the activities of various police officials in the matter lead to any criminal offence or misconduct on their part and to proceed accordingly. Justice Vivek Jain in his order observed, “In the present case, it is a case of there being no legal evidence against the present petitioner to continue with the impugned charge sheet. On the other hand, it is a case of gross misuse of powers by the police, which is nothing but a grossly oppressive action by the police authority in the present case, which has had the effect of putting the petitioners to give prejudice by involving them into a non-existent case having no legal evidence.”BackgroundA petition was filed by two brothers praying to constitute a Special Investigation Team or to pass an order to some high power special agency to investigate into the manipulations made in the FIR against Roopansh Khatri for offences under Section 279 (Rash driving or riding on a public way) and 337 (Causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) of IPC. It is alleged that the FIR and consequential investigation only facilitates claim of compensation by the complainant in connivance with the police officials i.e. respondents No. 3 and 4. The counsel for the petitioners submitted that the petitioners belong to an affluent family and own good property in Jabalpur. It was stated that a racket is going on in the city to implicate persons having good financial means and having vehicles of their ownership, in false motor accident claims case only so as to extract compensation either from the vehicle owners or from the insurance company.The counsel submitted that the petitioners have become the victims of this racket going on between the claimants and police officials to lodge false FIRs, conduct biased investigation and implicate vehicles in non-existent road traffic accidents. It was stated that vehicle of the petitioner No. 2 got involved and they have been falsely implicated in the case. It was contended that the entire FIR was based on concocted story of an accident taking place.FindingsAs per the FIR, an incident took place where the motorcycle driver by the complainant dashed with motor cycle driven by the petitioner No. 1 and owned by the petitioner No. 2. Three months later a Dehati Nalish (an informal complaint made before FIR) was registered. To justify the late registration of FIR, the respondents stated that the spot of the accident was such that there was confusion amongst three Police Stations regarding jurisdiction and the complainant was being made to wander from here to there. The complainant then reached out to the Superintendent of Police and thereafter, FIR was registered.“It is really surprising that the S.P. sent him to Police Station Gohalpur. Gohalpur is not one of three police stations among which there was confusion, because undisputedly looking to geography of Jabalpur city Gohalpur is in a totally different place and there could have been no confusion that the place of accident would fall in Gohalpur Police Station. It is surprising to note that the Superintendent of Police Jabalpur did not know that under which police station area spot of accident falls and if he was under any confusion then he could have directed any Additional Superintendent of Police or Deputy Superintendent of Police under him to enquire and fix the jurisdiction of spot of accident… then it is evident that there cannot any better example of a totally negligent, careless and incompetent officer holding the post of Superintendent of Police, Jabalpur.”, the Court said.Fabricated lettersThe Court noted that letter written by complainant to the SP did not bear the signature of the Superintendent of Police or any other police official.It was further noted that a new letter was created by Police Station Ghamapur forwarding complaint to Police Station Ranjhi so as to fill up the gap that when the SP had directed Police Station Gohalpur to look into the matter.“This letter of Police Station Ghamapur is a totally new thing and it is something totally alien to the entire controversy, because it is neither out of the three police stations among which confusion was there, nor the police station to which the complainant is stated to have been sent by the S.P. It is a fifth police station jumping in the fray and seems that this letter is having concocted letter number and date of some non-existent letter S.P. Office Jabalpur, these particulars in the “Sandarbh” (reference) contained in this letter seems to have been fabricated only to fill the missing link that how the complaint of the complainant went to Police Station Ranjhi and to fill up the gap up to...

'Gross Misuse Of Powers By Police': MP High Court Quashes FIR In Fake Motor Accident Case, Directs DGP To Conduct Inquiry Against Officers

Anukriti Mishra

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