HC quashes theft case proceedings over delayed cognizance

Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court has quashed criminal proceedings in a theft case where cognizance was taken by the judicial magistrate beyond the mandatory period of three years prescribed under section 468 of criminal procedure code (CrPC).The court also directed the judicial training and research institute (JTRI), Lucknow to impart training to judicial officers in the state that "cognizance is the base of a criminal case, so cognizance order must be passed in accordance with law."
Accordingly, Justice Praveen Kumar Giri quashed the criminal case filed against one Avneesh Kumar. Earlier, the court had called for an explanation from the chief judicial magistrate (CJM) Firozabad as to why cognizance was taken beyond the limitation period. The court in order dated Jan 19 took strong exception to the explanation offered by the then CJM, Firozabad, who submitted that, as per the usual practice prevalent in all magisterial courts, no in-depth enquiry is made on police reports before taking cognizance. The case pertained to a motorcycle theft incident. The FIR was lodged in July 2019 under section 379 of IPC. The first chargesheet was filed against five co-accused and cognizance taken promptly. However, the investigation against the applicant - Avneesh Kumar and another accused - Suraj Thakur remained pending before the court. The second chargesheet against these two was prepared on June 26, 2021, but it remained at the circle officer, city, Firozabad for over three years. Eventually, it was submitted to the court in Nov 2024. Ignoring the 3-year limitation bar, the Chief Judicial Magistrate concerned took cognisance of the same more than five years after the incident and three years after the charge sheet date.