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Criminal LawSupreme Court of India

Shivgiri Associates v. Metso Mineral (India) Pvt. Ltd.

Criminal Appeal · Neutral citation not assigned (Criminal Appeal No. 1771 of 2014)Decided 20 Aug 2014
Criminal Appeal No. 1771 of 2014
Justice T.S. Thakur · Justice Vikramajit Sen

Background

Metso filed a cheque-dishonour complaint in Gurgaon because its demand notice was sent from there and the reply was received there. The cheques were drawn on a Bangalore bank and presented through another Bangalore bank. The High Court accepted Gurgaon jurisdiction, and the accused appealed before post-summoning evidence began.

Decision Breakdown

Applying the Court's August 2014 Dashrath Rupsingh Rathod ruling, the Bench allowed the appeal and recalled interim orders. Sending a demand notice from Gurgaon did not confer criminal territorial jurisdiction; the relevant dishonour occurred at the drawer's Bangalore bank. Because post-summoning evidence had not been recorded, the complaint did not fall within the category allowed to remain where pending. It was to be returned for refiling in the proper Bangalore court, with filing within thirty days treated as timely. The Court did not decide whether the debt or dishonour offence was proved.

Lesson Learnt

Under the rule applied in this 2014 judgment, sending a notice from a chosen city did not create filing jurisdiction. Return and timely refiling preserved the complainant's opportunity to pursue the case.

Shivgiri Associates v. Metso Mineral (India) Pvt. Ltd. – Legal Case Shots | LegalAware