Deepak Chandrakant Jhaveri & Ors. v. Johnson Dye Works (P) Ltd. & Ors.
Background
This matter arose from a long-running property dispute among members of the Jhaveri family and a tenant company over premises in Mumbai, where two related suits were pending before the Court of Small Causes. A third party to the dispute (New Era Fabrics Ltd.) applied under Section 340 of the Criminal Procedure Code, asking the Supreme Court to initiate criminal perjury proceedings against one of the Jhaveri family members, alleging he had deliberately given false information to the Court about the stage of the two suits in an earlier application.
Decision Breakdown
The Court examined the allegedly false statement and found that the person accused had, in his own rejoinder, admitted the error and tendered an unconditional apology, explaining it arose from confusion caused by a pending application to recast the suit's issues rather than any deliberate intent to mislead. The Court held this explanation was reasonable and that no prima facie case of deliberately misleading the Court was made out. The application seeking initiation of criminal perjury proceedings was dismissed.
Lesson Learnt
Not every inaccurate statement made to a court amounts to perjury: courts will look for genuine intent to deceive, and a credible, timely, and honest admission of error with an apology can defeat an application to prosecute for giving false evidence.