In a recent ruling, a bench of the Supreme Court, comprising Justices CT Ravikumar and Rajesh Bindal, made a significant decision, emphasizing the need for a meticulous examination of allegations when invoking power under Section 482 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The case in question involved an appeal by Rajaram Sharma against the Allahabad High Court's order, which had dismissed his plea for quashing a criminal case under various sections of the Indian Penal Code.

Sharma, the appellant, argued that even if the allegations were accepted as true, they failed to meet the necessary criteria to establish the offenses mentioned in the case. The core of the matter revolved around the transfer of funds from the bank account of Pankaj Sharma and his wife Ashu Sharma to the appellant's account, allegedly related to the sale of a plot of land.

The Supreme Court bench scrutinized the allegations and highlighted a crucial point – there was no evidence of a formal agreement regarding the alleged deal between the appellant and the concerned parties. The court emphasized the absence of any supporting documentation attached to the complaint. Moreover, Pankaj Sharma and Ashu, from whose account the money was transferred, were not the complainants. The appellant contended that the second respondent, a stranger to the facts presented in the FIR, was not eligible to file the complaint.

Remarkably, the second respondent, acting as the de-facto complainant, did not contest the matter despite receiving notice. The Supreme Court, after a careful examination of the allegations, the FIR, and the charge sheet, concluded that the essential elements required to establish offenses under Sections 420, 406, 504, and 506 of the IPC were not present. The bench criticized the High Court for not addressing this crucial aspect when the case was brought before it under Section 482 of the CrPC.

Consequently, the Supreme Court set aside the High Court's order and quashed the entire proceedings arising from the FIR. The justices clarified that the quashing of the FIR and charge sheet would lead to the termination of all further proceedings, including those against other accused individuals, such as Rakesh Rajora, in the same case.

Case: Rajaram Sharma vs. The State of Uttar Pradesh & Anr,

CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 63 OF 2024 (Arising out of SLP(Crl.) No. 6384/2020).

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