Page No.# 1/4 GAHC010136342025 2025:GAU-AS:16096 THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : Crl.Pet./758/2025 HIFJUR RAHMAN S/O- LATE AJIJUR RAHMAN. R/O- VILL.- SONAPUR PATHER, P.S.- SONAPUR, DIST.- KAMRUP(M), ASSAM VERSUS 1. THE STATE OF ASSAM AND ANR REPRESENTED BY THE PP, ASSAM 2:ASI BIMAN KNOWAR S/O- LATE SUKEN KNOWAR OF NELLIE O.P. P.S.- JAGIROAD DIST.- MORIGAON ASSAM Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. M M ZAMAN, IMDADUL ISLAM,M RAHMAN,MR A BASUMATARY,N. J. AHMED,N. J. DUTTA Advocate for the Respondent : PP, ASSAM, B E F O R E HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE SANJEEV KUMAR SHARMA ORDER 26.11.2025 This criminal petition has been filed under Section 528 of the BNSS, 2023 read with Article 227 of the Constitution of India praying for quashing of impugned Charge- Page No.# 2/4 Sheet No. 28/2024 dated 29.02.2024 arising out of Jagiroad PS Case No. 238/2023 dated 10.08.2023 under Sections 279/307/427/420/468/471/379/34 IPC and subsequent criminal proceedings in PRC No. 442/2024 pending in the Court of learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Morigaon. 2. Heard Mr. N.J. Dutta, learned counsel for the petitioner. Also heard Mr. R.J. Baruah, learned Addl. Public Prosecutor for the State. 3. The gist of the accusation in this case is that on 10.08.2023, one Bimin Konwar, ASI of Nellie Police Out Post lodged an FIR before the Officer-in-Charge, Jagiroad Police Station, inter-alia, alleging that on receipt of an information through secret sources that three persons involved in ATM fraud were coming from Nagaon side to Guwahati in a blue colour Swift car bearing registration No. AS01EG6815 and accordingly, a naka checking was conducted. 4. Later on, when the said car approached the naka checking area, it was signaled to stop, however, the driver disobeyed the signal and barged against the barricades and in the process injured some of the police personnel on duty. Later on, the vehicle was intercepted and the occupants of the said vehicle were arrested. They were found to be involved in ATM fraud. 37 ATM numbers of cards, one swipe machine, 4 numbers of mobile phones and some other materials were seized from their possession. 5. Learned counsel for the petitioner has submitted that the petitioner is in no way involved in the offence alleged in the FIR. His only involvement is that one of the occupants of the vehicle namely, Hanifur Rahman is his own brother and the vehicle which was seized in connection with this case is his own vehicle. 6. Learned counsel for the petitioner has further submitted that as accused Hanifur Rahman is brother of the petitioner, he was allowed by the petitioner to use his vehicle without knowing anything about the alleged misdeeds in which his brother was Page No.# 3/4 indulging in. 7. On the other hand, learned Addl. Public Prosecutor has produced the Case Diary of Jagiroad P. S. Case No. 238/2023 and has submitted that though there are incriminating materials against the other accused persons, it appears from the case diary that the present petitioner is the owner of the vehicle which was seized in connection with this case and he allowed his brother, who is the main accused in this case, to use the said vehicle. 8. Learned Addl. Public Prosecutor has submitted that the charge sheet has already been submitted in the case and on perusal of the TCR, it appears that the I.O has sent up the present petitioner along with three other accused persons to face charges before the Court. 9. It is submitted by learned Addl. Public Prosecutor that the involvement or non- involvement of the petitioner is a matter for trial and will be decided accordingly. However, other than the fact that the petitioner was the owner of the vehicle, no other involvement or material against the present petitioner appears to have been collected by the I.O and none have been pointed out. Therefore, the charge sheet itself does not disclose any offense against the present petitioner. 10. Therefore, that being the case and in view of the settled law, as is discernable from the decision of the Apex Court in State of Haryana & Others Vs. Bhajan Lal & Others reported in 1992 Supp(1) SCC 335 as well as a catena of other decisions on the same line, allowing the criminal proceedings to proceed against the petitioner in absence of any material against the petitioner would be an abuse of the process of the law. 11. Consequently, the impugned Charge-Sheet No. 28/2024 dated 29.02.2024 arising out of Jagiroad PS Case No. 238/2023 dated 10.08.2023 and the subsequent proceedings in PRC No. 442/2024 are hereby quashed and the petitioner’s name shall be treated as Page No.# 4/4 deleted from the Charge-Sheet. The Criminal Petition stands disposed of. JUDGE Comparing Assistant