SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

Before:- G.B. Pattanaik and U.C. Banerjee, JJ.

Crl. Appeal No. 397 of 2001 (arising out of S.L.P. (Crl.) No. 3372 of 2000). D/d. 30.3.2001.

Ram Narain - Petitioner

Versus

Murat and other - Respondents

Criminal Procedure Code, 1973, Section 482 - Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 Section 3(i)(v) Quashing of proceedings - Under Section 3(i)(v) of 1989 Act - High Court assumed that respondents were in possession of land and quashed the proceedings ignoring the fact that civil suit was pending - Order set aside.

[Para 2]

JUDGMENT

Leave granted.

2. The complainant is in appeal against the order of learned single Judge of Allahabad High Court. The Allahabad High Court in exercise of powers under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure quashed the pending proceedings initiated under section 3(i)(v) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. The impugned judgment indicates that the High Court came to a conclusion that the petitioner before it was in possession of the land bearing Plot Nos. 72, 73 and 74, and on that basis interferred with the criminal proceedings. There is no finding of any competent forum that the petitioner before the High Court, namely Murat and others arein possession of disputed plots, and on the other hand, a civil suit is pending before the Civil Court. That being the position, the High Court was in error in assuming that Murat and others were in possession of the land, and on that erroneous assumption interferred and quashed the criminal proceedngs. This, on the face of it, is in excess of the jurisdiction conferred on the High Court under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. We, therefore, set aside the impugned order passedby the High Court and direct the criminal proceedings may go on the accordance with law.

3. The appeal is disposed of accordingly.

Order accordingly.