M/S Rsvp Sales Corporation vs. State Of Rajasthan

Facts

The petitioner, M/s Rsvp Sales Corporation, filed a criminal miscellaneous petition before the High Court of Judicature for Rajasthan, Bench at Jaipur, seeking to quash FIR No. 218/2024. The State of Rajasthan, through the Public Prosecutor, filed a reply. In paragraph 8 of the reply, it was stated that offenses under Sections 420 and 406 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) were not made out. A factual report was also submitted, indicating that after investigation, the Investigating Officer proposed a final report as 'Adam Vaku' (meaning no offense found) on the grounds that the dispute between the parties was civil in nature.

Held

The Court noted that the Public Prosecutor had filed a reply stating that offenses under Section 420 and 406 IPC were not made out. Furthermore, the factual report submitted indicated that the investigation concluded the dispute was civil in nature, leading the Investigating Officer to propose a final report of 'Adam Vaku'. Consequently, the Court found the criminal miscellaneous petition for quashing the FIR to be rendered infructuous. The principle derived is that if a criminal investigation reveals a dispute to be purely civil and no criminal offenses are made out, a criminal proceeding can be quashed or deemed infructuous.

Key Issues

1. Whether the offenses under Section 420 and 406 of the Indian Penal Code are made out in relation to the dispute between the petitioner and the respondent, as alleged in FIR No. 218/2024? The petitioner sought to quash the FIR. The State, through the Public Prosecutor, argued that the investigation revealed the dispute to be of a civil nature and that offenses under Sections 420 and 406 IPC were not made out. The State's submission was based on the investigation report and the proposed final report.