Court Declines Quashing of FIR, Directing Completion of Long-Pending Investigation Within Four Weeks

The petitioners filed a petition under Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, seeking the quashing of FIR No. 322 of 2022 registered at Police Station City Kotwali, Mungeli, for offences under Sections 420 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC)

The complainant alleged that Petitioner No. 1, while assisting in the medical treatment of the complainant’s mother, gained access to an ATM card and illegally withdrew Rs. 6,96,936/-

The petitioners contended that the transactions occurred between 2016 and 2020 with parental consent for domestic and medical purposes, and the FIR was registered after an inordinate delay in 2022

Furthermore, the petitioners argued that despite the lapse of over three years since the FIR, no charge-sheet had been filed

1. Whether the FIR and pending investigation should be quashed on the grounds of being illegal, arbitrary, or involving civil disputes dressed as criminal offences

2. Whether the delay in the investigation and the registration of the FIR warrants the acquittal or discharge of the petitioners at this stage

The court applied the principle that the inherent jurisdiction to quash an FIR must be exercised sparingly and with circumspection, specifically only when the allegations do not disclose an offence or represent an abuse of the process of law

The court referenced Section 528 of the BNSS, 2023 (the successor to Section 482 of the Cr.P.C.), regarding the High Court's inherent powers

It further relied on the procedural requirements for filing a police report under Section 173(2) of the Cr.P.C., now corresponding to Section 193(3) of the BNSS, 2023

The Court observed that the investigation into the alleged financial misappropriation was still pending and a final police report had not yet been filed

It declined to examine disputed questions of fact or the merits of the allegations, noting that doing so at this stage might prejudice the ongoing investigation

The Court acknowledged the petitioners' grievance regarding the protracted nature of the proceedings, noting that the FIR had been registered in 2022 and remained unresolved by 2026

Consequently, while the Court found no grounds for the immediate quashing of the FIR, it determined that judicial intervention was necessary to ensure the timely completion of the statutory investigation process

The Court further granted the petitioners liberty to challenge the final police report before the competent forum if they remain aggrieved