The Allahabad High Court will hear on June 14 a case where a petition seeking cancellation of an FIR which was filed and withdrawn from the Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court be filed in the Principal Bench at Prayagraj without seeking permission for it.
The Division Bench of Justice Om Prakash-VII and Justice Vikas Budhwar passed this order while hearing a petition filed by Rameshwar Singh Yadav and Another.
The petitioners approached the Lucknow Bench seeking the following reliefs:
“Wherefore, it is most respectfully prayed that the Court may graciously be pleased to-
(i) to issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus commanding the opposite party no 1 to transfer the investigation of Case Crime No.235 of 2022, under Section 2 and 3 U.P Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986 to CBCID, Uttar Pradesh or to any other independent investigating agency as the Court deems, just and proper in the interest of justice.
(ii) to issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari quashing the impugned First Information Report dated 18.04.2022 at Case under Section 2 and 3 UP Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986 lodged in Police Station Kotwali Nagar, District Etah as contained in Annexure No 1 to the writ petition.
(iii) to pass any other suitable order or direction which is deemed just and proper in the circumstances of the case.
(iv) Allow the writ petition with costs.”
The Court noted,
Eventually, at the instance of the petitioners herein, relief no 2 in so far as it pertains to the challenge made to the FIR dated 18.4.2022, case under section 2/3 of the UP Gangsters and AntiSocial Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986 lodged at Police Station Kotwali Nagar, District Etah was withdrawn while deleting the prayer therein and seeking liberty to seek legal remedy as admissible to the petitioners.
Essentially, the argument of Additional Advocate General appears for the State is at the first instance that once the petitioner herein has got deleted the relief in so far as it pertains to challenging the FIR coupled with the fact that while withdrawing the said relief, the petitioner herein has further sought liberty to seek legal remedies as available under law, then the writ petition at the behest of the petitioners herein is not maintainable as even otherwise in absence of any liberty so granted by the Lucknow Bench of the Court to approach the Court while filing the writ petition, the petition is not maintainable and secondly, two simultaneous proceedings, one at Lucknow Bench and second at Allahabad before the Court is not maintainable.
“Goyal has sought to rely upon the decision of the Division Bench of the Court dated 22.4.2019 in Writ – C No – 12468 of 2019 (Dheer Singh and Another Versus State of U.P and 3 Others) in order to buttress his submission.
Confronted with the said situation, Ashok Mehta, senior counsel for the petitioner, has sought short indulgence to address the Court on both the issues. On the request of Mehta, include the case in the list of fresh matters on 14.6.2022,” the order reads.