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Ravindranatha Bajpe v. Mangalore Special Economic Zone Ltd. and Ors.

Criminal Appeal · 2021 INSC 555Decided 27 Sept 2021
Criminal Appeal Nos. 1047-1048 of 2021
Justice M.R. Shah · Justice A.S. Bopanna

Background

The appellant, a landowner, filed a private criminal complaint against a company and its directors/executives after contractors allegedly trespassed on his land, demolished his boundary wall, and cut down about 100 trees while laying a water pipeline, causing him significant financial loss. A magistrate issued summons against several accused, including senior officials of the companies involved who were stationed elsewhere and not alleged to be physically present during the incident. The Sessions Court and then the High Court both quashed the summons as against these senior officials, prompting the complainant's appeal to the Supreme Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that the complaint contained only bald, general allegations of "conspiracy" and "common intention" against the company's Chairman, Managing Director, and other senior officials, without any specific allegation of their individual role or presence at the time of the incident. Relying on settled precedent, the Court reiterated that company directors and executives cannot be made vicariously liable for a criminal offence committed by or on behalf of a company unless a specific statutory provision creates such liability, or there is concrete evidence of the individual's own active role and criminal intent. Since the magistrate's summoning order did not reflect any application of mind to a prima facie case against these specific individuals, the Court upheld the quashing of summons against them and dismissed the appeal, while directing that the complaint proceed on its merits against the remaining accused (the site-level personnel and labourers) who were not before the Court.

Lesson Learnt

Simply holding a senior position like Chairman or Managing Director does not automatically make a person criminally liable for acts committed by employees of the company; a complaint must set out the specific role each individual played before a court can summon them as an accused.

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

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