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Bharam Prakash Yadav vs. State NCT of Delhi & Ors.

Criminal Miscellaneous Case · 2026:DHC:7327Decided 1 Sept 2026New Delhi Bench
CRL.M.C. 1875/2025CNR: DLHC010141822025
Justice Madhu Jain

Background

The 73-year-old petitioner alleged that his daughter-in-law and her relatives (some connected to the Delhi Police) coerced him into transferring residential property and issuing cheques worth Rs. 1.5 crores, under threat of false criminal cases, and that this ordeal contributed to his son's death. His application for police investigation under Section 156(3) CrPC was dismissed by the Magistrate and, on revision, by the Additional Sessions Judge.

Decision Breakdown

The High Court held that Section 156(3) CrPC investigation is discretionary, not automatic, and is warranted only where evidence is genuinely beyond the complainant's own reach. Since the petitioner already knew the identities of the accused and witnesses, possessed the disputed documents and an audio recording, and could summon bank/property records through the trial court itself, the lower courts were right to require him to lead evidence through the complaint procedure instead of ordering a police investigation. The petition was dismissed, but the trial court complaint proceedings themselves continue.

Lesson Learnt

A court will not order a police investigation under Section 156(3) CrPC merely because an allegation is serious: the complainant must show that the evidence is genuinely beyond their own ability to produce before the trial court.

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