Srinagar, June 18: Justice Sanjay Dhar has quashed the FIR as also the order of trial court on which basis the FIR under challenge was passed against the revenue officials for retrieving the state land from the possession of a trust situated in Kokernag area of district Anantnag.
It was stated in the application for registration of FIR that the trust has been constructed on the proprietary land and adjacent to the proprietary land, there is a portion of State land which is also recorded in the name of the trust under the J&K State Lands (Vesting of Ownership to Occupants) Act.
However, after the abrogation of the aforesaid Act, initiated the process of retrieving the state land from the trust as per the court directions which was resisted by the trust with a complainant that the authorities are causing interference in running the trust and the trust is ready to provide proprietary land to the Government in exchange of the State land already under its occupation but the revenue officials turned a deaf ear to their request.
Justice Sanjay Dhar has quashed the order of trial court as well as the FIR citing that the applicants have not followed the procedure as they were required to approach the concerned SHO in the first instance and then SSP concerned with the complaint then the option to make complaint before the trial court.
The court has clarified it that complainant (Chairman of the trust) in his complaint itself has admitted that the petitioner-revenue officials were acting pursuant to the abrogation of ROSHNI Act, which means that they were acting pursuant to the judgment of the high court.
Thus, on this ground also no offence is made out against the petitioners. In fact, from the material on record , it appears that the complainant has, with a view to obstruct the petitioners from discharging their official functions pursuant to the directions of the Court, resorted to lodging of the impugned FIR so as to wreak vengeance upon them and to resist the eviction from the State land”, the court added.
The court said the instant case is a fit one where this Court should exercise its power under Section 482 of Cr. P. C to quash the criminal proceedings against the petitioners so as to prevent abuse of process of law and to secure the ends of justice & for the foregoing reasons, the petition is allowed and impugned order dated 25.03.2022 passed by the Judicial Magistrate, 1st Class, Vailoo, as well as the impugned FIR No.55/2022 registered pursuant thereto along with the proceedings emanating there from are quashed.
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