Rajasthan High Court: In a petition filed by the petitioner, Sarpanch, Gram Panchayat Jawala, seeking the quashment of FIR alleging that his political rivals fabricated the allegations to malign his reputation and harm his career, a single-judge bench of Farjand Ali, J., disposed of the petition with directions to the Superintendent of Police to ensure procedural fairness and protection against arbitrary arrest.
In the instant matter, the petitioner sought quashing of an FIR registered against him alleging that he instigated others to assault the complainant. The complainant alleged that some individuals attacked him on the petitioner’s instructions. The petitioner contended that he was not present at the scene of the crime, which was corroborated by video evidence. The petitioner further alleged that his political rivals fabricated the allegations to malign his reputation and harm his career.
The Court noted that the FIR disclosed a cognizable offence, necessitating investigation. The Court noted that the video evidence showed that the petitioner was not present at the scene, casting doubt on the complainant’s allegations. The Court asserted that political rivalry often leads to misuse of the legal process to harm opponents, which needs careful scrutiny.
“In present era, when it is rampant in between the political rivalries to drag the name of their opponent in a case with an oblique object to get damage to their political career and, thus, it is deemed appropriate to disposed of this criminal misc. petition with a direction to the police to conduct fair, impartial and expeditious investigation in this matter.”
The Court directed the petitioner to submit a representation to the Superintendent of Police along with relevant documents. The Superintendent of Police was directed to personally monitor the investigation to ensure objectivity. The Court further directed that
The petitioner shall not be arrested during the investigation, in line with the principles laid down in Arnesh Kumar v. State of Bihar, .
If offences are established against the petitioner post-investigation, a prior notice of one month must be served before any arrest, allowing the petitioner to exercise his rights.
The Court disposed of the present petition to quash the FIR with directions to ensure a fair, impartial, and expeditious investigation.
[Om Prakash v. State of Rajasthan, S.B. Criminal Misc (Pet.) No. 8225/2024, Decided on 21-11-2024]
Advocates who appeared in this case :
Mr. J.S. Choudhary, Sr. Advocate assisted by Mr. Pradeep Choudhary, Counsel for the Petitioner
Mr. Vikram Singh Rajpurohit, Dy.GA, Counsel for the Respondent 1
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