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Sujal Vishwas Attavar & Anr. v. The State of Maharashtra & Ors.

Criminal Appeal · 2026 INSC 442Decided 4 May 2026
Crl.A. No.-002325-002325 - 2026
Justice Sanjay Karol · Justice Augustine George Masih

Background

A company that had leased out part of its property alleged that the lease of one unit was fraudulently executed, and later executed in breach of a moratorium imposed during its insolvency proceedings. Instead of first approaching the police or a magistrate under the statutory process, the company went straight to the Bombay High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution, which directed the police to record statements and take action, leading to registration of an FIR against the appellants. The appellants challenged this interim High Court order before the Supreme Court.

Decision Breakdown

The Supreme Court held that a writ court should not ordinarily be used as the first port of call to get an FIR registered or investigated, when the law (now the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023) provides a structured, sequential remedy: first to the police, then the Superintendent of Police, then the Magistrate under Section 175(3) BNSS. Since the complainant company had not exhausted these statutory remedies and there was no urgency involving danger to life or liberty, invoking Article 226 directly was premature and impermissible. The Court set aside the High Court's interim order and quashed the FIR, while clarifying it expressed no opinion on the merits of whether any offence was actually committed, and leaving parties free to pursue lawful remedies afresh.

Lesson Learnt

If police refuse to register an FIR or fail to investigate properly, the law requires going through the statutory chain (the Superintendent of Police, then the Magistrate) before rushing to the High Court's writ jurisdiction; courts will normally decline to bypass this sequence except in genuine emergencies.

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

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