Madhya Pradesh High Court: In a petition seeking to quash the FIR against the petitioner, an advocate who was booked for posing as a Travelling Ticket Examiner (TTE) at the Bhopal railway station platform, a single-judge bench comprising of Anuradha Shukla, J., refused to quash the FIR and held that absence of direct passenger statements and recovery of money, validity of the charges and claims of false implication should be examined by the trial court, not at the stage of quashing the FIR.
In the instant matter, on 22-06-2021, the Deputy Station Superintendent at Bhopal railway station, was informed by T.C. about a person impersonating a TTE and collecting money from passengers at Platform No. 2. The individual was later identified, and the petitioner was found in possession of an EFT/HCR Book and could not produce any identity documents. The petitioner, who claimed to be a resident of district Kaushambi (U.P.), was taken to the police station where an FIR was registered against him, for offenses under Sections 170, 171, and 419 of the Penal Code, 1860 (IPC). A charge-sheet was subsequently filed including additional offenses under Sections 467, 468, and 471 of IPC. The petitioner filed a petition under Section 482 of the Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 (CrPC) seeking the quashment of an FIR registered against him.
The petitioner claimed he was falsely implicated and the book which was seized is not an official EFT Book but a simple money receipt book. It was argued that no evidence was collected showing that the money was received from passengers, moreover, no passenger complaints were recorded. The petitioner stated that being the advocate, he was wearing a black coat and the same was without any TTE insignia. The petitioner asserted that the FIR was registered two days after the incident, indicating unlawful detention. The petitioner also claimed to lose his mental balance due to the Covid pandemic. However, the State opposed the petition, asserting it lacked merit and should be dismissed.
The Court noted that the report from North-Central Railway dated 03-01-2022 indicated the book seized was not an official EFT Book but appeared to be a money receipt book with a railway seal, creating an impression of official documents. The Court noted that the CCTV footage indicated the petitioner was seen questioning passengers about their tickets. The Court stated that the issues regarding the recovery of money, badges, and passenger statements are factual matters and are to be determined in trial. The Court held that the factual disputes raised by the petitioner are to be examined during the trial, and the absence of passenger statements alone is insufficient to conclude false implication at this stage. The Court dismissed the petition and refused to quash the FIR.
[Rohit Kumar Mishra v. State of M.P., 2024 SCC OnLine MP 3438, order dated 12-03-2024]
Advocates who appeared in this case :
Shri Anuvaad Shrivastava, Counsel for the Applicant
Smt. Vineeta Sharma, Counsel for the Respondent No. 1
None, Counsel for the Respondent No. 2
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