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PETITIONER:

USHA AHUJA

Vs.

RESPONDENT:

STATE OF HARYANA & ORS.

DATE OF JUDGMENT: 20/08/1999

BENCH:

Syed Shah Mohammed Quadri, K.Venkataswami

JUDGMENT:

SYED SHAH MOHAMMED QUADRI,J.

Leave is granted. The appellant and the second

respondent were partners of partnership firm, M/s.Jupiter

Industries. A complaint was lodged against the second and

third respondents, FIR No.193, under Sections 405, 406 and

408, IPC at the Police Station, Mujessar, District Faridabad

on July 19, 1996. A Civil Suit is pending between the

parties for dissolution of the partnership firm and

rendition of accounts. The said respondents filed Criminal

Misc.Petition 24679-M of 1997 before the High Court of

Punjab & Haryana praying to quash the FIR. The High Court

by its order dated April 17, 1998, having noticed that a

Civil Suit is pending between the parties and investigation

on the complaint of the appellant by the police is in

progress, stayed the filing of the final report under

Section 173, Cr.P.C. by the police. It is from that order,

this appeal has arisen.

Heard the learned counsel for the parties.

The relevant portion of the impugned order of the High

Court reads as follows :

"In view of the facts and circumstances of the case,

it appears to be reasonable, if the filing of the final

report under Section 173, Cr.P.C. is stayed till the

decision of the suit. Ordered accordingly."

It is now well-settled that the width of power of the

High Court under Section 482 Cr.P.C., in principle, is very

expansive but in practice the power is exercised in

exceptional cases. The inherent power of the Court is not

an unrestricted power to make any order which the High Court

desires to pass. The power is meant to be exercised to give

effect to any order under Cr.P.C. or to prevent abuse of

the process of any Court or otherwise to secure the ends of

justice. By passing the impugned order, the High Court did

not achieve any of the purposes for which the power exists.

It does no good to anybody. It is of utmost importance that

criminal cases be disposed of expeditiously as right of an

accused to have speedy trial is a right which flows from

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Article 21 of the Constitution. Far from ensuring speedy

trial the High Court placed embargo at the pre-trial stage

by staying the filing of final report by the police under

Section 173 Cr.P.C. It is a well- known fact that disposal

of a civil suit takes fairly long time, so no useful purpose

will be achieved by staying the filing of the final report

under Section 173 Cr.P.C. by the police till the disposal

of the suit. The impugned order serves no useful purpose,

nay, it is wholly extraneous to the purposes for which the

power is preserved. In our view, it is most inappropriate

to stay the filing of the final report by the police under

Section 173 Cr.P.C. after the police has investigated the

case. We are, therefore, unable to sustain the order under

appeal; we set aside the same. Let further steps be taken

in accordance with law. Appeal is accordingly allowed.