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B.R.K. Aathithan vs. Sun Group & Anr.

Not available · 2022 INSC 1236Decided 29 Nov 2022
Not available
Surya Kant · J.K. Maheshwari · Maheshwari

Background

The appellant was arrested after an FIR alleged he had taken money from candidates by promising them law-college admissions, and this was reported by the respondent media group. Believing this reporting was criminal defamation, the appellant filed a criminal complaint against the respondents, which the Magistrate dismissed on merits, finding it fell within the "truth" exception to defamation law. The appellant withdrew his revision petition against that dismissal, then filed a second, near-identical complaint on the same facts, which the Magistrate this time admitted, prompting the respondents to get it quashed by the Madras High Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court upheld the High Court's quashing of the second complaint. It held that a second complaint on the same facts is maintainable only in exceptional situations, for example, if the first was dismissed on a technicality, without examining the merits, or based on facts that later came to light. Here, the Magistrate had applied his mind and dismissed the first complaint on merits (finding the fourth exception to defamation applied), so an erroneous conclusion on merits does not open the door to a fresh complaint; the appellant's remedy was to pursue his revision petition, which he had instead withdrawn.

Lesson Learnt

You cannot re-file a criminal complaint on identical facts simply because you disagree with how the first one was decided on merits: the correct remedy is to appeal or revise that order, not restart the process from scratch.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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