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Sh. Narendra Kumar Srivastava v. The State of Bihar

Criminal Appeal · 2019 INSC 132Decided 4 Feb 2019
Criminal Appeal No. 211 of 2019
Justice A.K. Sikri · Justice S. Abdul Nazeer

Background

The appellant, a Doordarshan employee, had a long-running pay-scale dispute with his employer that led to contempt proceedings in the Patna High Court, which were dropped after the respondents filed a show-cause affidavit. Believing that affidavit contained false statements, the appellant filed a private criminal complaint against the Doordarshan officials for giving false evidence under Section 193 IPC, which a magistrate initially admitted, but the High Court, in revision, quashed the magistrate's order for taking cognizance.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court examined the interplay between Section 193 IPC (false evidence) and Section 195 of the CrPC, which bars courts from taking cognizance of certain offences, including giving false evidence in a judicial proceeding, except on a written complaint by the court itself, not a private party. Relying on its own precedent in M.S. Ahlawat v. State of Haryana, the Court held that offences under Section 195(1)(b)(i), which covers Section 193 IPC, can never be prosecuted on a private complaint; only the court in which the alleged false evidence was given can initiate such a prosecution under Section 340 CrPC. The appeal was dismissed, though the Court set aside the costs the High Court had separately imposed on the appellant.

Lesson Learnt

A citizen cannot personally file a criminal complaint alleging someone lied under oath or in an affidavit before a court, only that same court can authorise such a prosecution; the correct remedy is to apply to the court itself under Section 340 of the CrPC, not file a private complaint before a magistrate.

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

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