Domestic Violence Can Be Quashed By High Court Under Section 482 CrPC Even After Conviction : Bombay High Court

In a most significant event which as we saw had notably also culminated eventually with the Bombay High Court delivering a very progressive, powerful, purposeful, pertinent, pragmatic and practical judgment titled Shaikh Shaukat S/O Majit @ Majid Patel and Ors vs State of Maharashtra and Anr in Criminal Application No. 229 of 2022 that was pronounced as recently as on January 18, 2023, wherein the Bombay High Court Division Bench at Aurangabad while quashing a domestic violence case that was filed by the wife against her husband and in-laws made it absolutely clear that there is no embargo on quashing a case emanating from a matrimonial dispute even after conviction when an appeal is pending.

- SANJEEV SIROHI

The Trial Court had convicted the accused in this leading case in March 2021. It must be mentioned here that a Division Bench comprising of Hon’ble Justice Smt Anuja Prabhadessai and Hon’ble Justice Mr RM Joshi who authored this most commendable judgment observed explicitly that the High Court’s powers under Section 482 of CrPC can be exercised in post-conviction matters when an appeal is pending before a judicial forum.

At the very outset, this latest, learned, laudable, landmark and logical judgment delivered by the Division Bench sets the ball in motion by first and foremost putting forth in para 1 that, “With consent, heard finally at the stage of admission.”

 While throwing light on the reason for making the application, the Division Bench then lays bare in para 2 that, “By this Application under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the Applicants have sought to quash the criminal proceedings bearing R.C.C. No. 50/2021 emanating from the first information report bearing C.R. No. 280/2017, dated 07.11.2017 registered at Phulambri Police Station for the offences punishable under Sections 498-A, 323, 504, 506 read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code.”