The Allahabad High Court has rejected the application filed seeking quashing of the FIR registered against Samajwadi Party MP Zia-ur-Rahman Barq.
The Division Bench of Justice Rajiv Gupta and Justice Mohd Azhar Husain Idrisi passed this order while hearing a petition filed by Zia-Ur-Rehman Barq.
Although, the prayer made in the writ petition is to quash the FIR arising out of Case under Sections 191(2), 191(3), 190, 221, 132, 125, 324(5), 196, 223(b), 326(f) of BNS, 2023 and Sections 3 & 5 of the Prevention of Damages to Public Property Act, 1984, Police Station Sambhal, District Sambhal, but when the matter has been taken up, counsel for the petitioner has submitted that all the offences, complained of, are punishable up to seven years and therefore, before effecting the arrest of the petitioner, specific provisions contained in Section 35 of BNSS be strictly complied with in view of law laid down by the Apex Court in several judgments.
The Court perused the FIR, which prima facie discloses the cognizable offence against the petitioner and therefore, the prayer made to quash the FIR cannot be entertained in view of law laid down by the Apex Court in the case of State of Telangana Vs. Habib Abdullah Jellani reported in (2017) 2 SCC 779 and Neeharika Infrastructure Pvt Ltd Vs State of Maharashtra and Others reported in (2021) SCC Online SC 315 and as such, the Court is of the view that no interference is warranted.
The Court observed that the fact that all the offences, complained of in the impugned FIR, are punishable with a term up to 7 years, therefore, in case of effecting the arrest of the petitioner in pursuance of the impugned FIR, the Court directed that the respondents/authorities shall ensure that the specific provisions contained in Section 35 of BNSS and the guidelines issued by the Apex Court in the case of Arnesh Kumar Vs State of Bihar reported in (2014) 8 SCC 273 as well as the directions issued in the order dated 28.01.2021.
With the aforesaid observations, the Court disposed of the petition.