- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31572 WP No. 22764 of 2024 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 20TH DAY OF JUNE, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO. 22764 OF 2024 (GM-RES) BETWEEN: SANJAY MALKANI SON OF MOHAN KISHANCHAND MALKANI AGED 47 YEARS HAVING REGISTERED OFFICE AT WRAP2EARN TECHNOLOGIES PVT LTD. A 803, OUR LADY OF VAILANKANI, MAHIM MUMBAI, MAHARASHTRA - 400016 …PETITIONER (BY MISS. KRUTIKA RAGHAVAN.,ADVOCATE) AND: 1. STATE OF KARNATAKA THROUGH CHIKKAJALA POLICE STATION, BANGALORE. REPRESENTED BY SPP HIGH COURT BUILDING BANGALORE – 560 001. 2. YASHWANT PAWAR AGED ABOUT 42 YEARS, FATHERS NAME IS UNKNOWN HC 7394 CHIKKAJALA HOBLI, BENGALURU – 562 157. …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. NAGESHWARAPPA.K, HCGP FOR R-1) THIS W.P IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA READ WITH SECTION 528 OF BNSS, PRAYING TO QUASH IMPUGNED ORDER DTD 14.07.2023 PASSED BY THE ADDL. CIVIL JUDGE AND JMFC, DEVANAHALLI ALONG WITH THE PROCEEDINGS IN CC NO. 2667/2023, VIDE ANNEXURE-A AS AGAINST THE PETITIONER. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ORDERS, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: Digitally signed by CHANDANA B M Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31572 WP No. 22764 of 2024 CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR ORAL ORDER In this petition, the petitioner seeks the following reliefs: “a. Quash Impugned Order dated 14.07.2023 passed by the Addl. Civil Judge and JMFC, Devanahalli along with the proceedings in C.C.No.2667/2023, vide Annexure-A, as against the Petitioner; b. Quash F.I.R. in Crime No.17/2023, registered at Chikkajala Police Station, vide Annexure-B, as against the petitioner. c. Quash the Chargesheet in C.C.No.2667/2023, vide Annexure-C, as against the Petitioner; d. Pass any such orders, as this Court deems fit. 2. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned HCGP for respondent No.1 and perused the material on record. 3. A perusal of the material on record will indicate that the petitioner is employed as a Sales Director in M/s. Wrap2Earn Technologies Private Limited, a Private Limited Company, which is inter alia engaged in the business of outdoor advertising and functions as an intermediary, connecting lessees/owners of hoardings and other commercial advertising platforms to potential advertisers. On 15.02.2023, the said Wrap2Earn entered into a services agreement with one M/s. Play Ventures NV, which was - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31572 WP No. 22764 of 2024 engaged in the business of gaming for the purpose of providing services to the said company and the advertising material provided by the said Company as mounted on its bill board as well as the services agreement have been produced by the petitioner in the present petition. The said services agreement will indicate that the petitioner has not signed the said agreement but the same is signed by the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the said M/s. Wrap2Earn on behalf of the Company. 4. On 18.03.2023, the aforesaid Company, M/s. Wrap2Earn received a police notice dated 18.03.2023, under Section 91 Cr.P.C., calling upon the Company to appear before the Investigating Officer regarding alleged offences under Sections 90 and 91 of the Karnataka Police Act, 1963 (for short “the K.P. Act”), pursuant to FIRs in Crime Nos.17/2023, 18/2023, 19/2023 and 20/2023 by the Chikkajala Police Station. The said Company, M/s. Wrap2Earn submitted its reply and intimated the Police Authorities that they had nothing to do with the offences alleged against Play Ventures NV referred to supra and learnt that the aforesaid FIRs had been registered against this Company. Subsequently, the Police Authorities issue one more notice to the petitioners herein - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31572 WP No. 22764 of 2024 dated 14.04.2023, which was followed by the impugned charge sheet dated 19.05.2023, which is currently pending in C.C.No.2667/2023 pursuant to the impugned order taking cognizance of the offences against the petitioner by arraigning him as accused No.2 to the impugned proceedings, aggrieved by which the petitioner is before this Court by way of the present petition. 5. A perusal of the material on record will indicate that despite the fact that the FIR was registered as against the aforesaid accused No.1, Play Ventures NV, the said accused No.1 has been dropped from the final charge sheet, though the entire complaint, FIR, charge sheet material etc., clearly indicate that the said accused No.1 could not have been dropped from the impugned proceedings by proceeding only against petitioner- accused No.2 and other accused persons. Further, though the petitioner is merely the Sales Director of M/s. Wrap2Earn, which entered into the services agreement dated 15.02.2023 with Play Ventures NV and the services agreement was signed by the CEO of M/s. Wrap2Earn and not by the petitioner, the petitioner has been arraigned as accused No.2 without arraigning the Company M/s. Wrap2Earn as accused, which is impermissible in law. In this - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31572 WP No. 22764 of 2024 context, since the offences alleged against the petitioner are under Section 90 and 91 of the K.P. Act, it would be necessary to extract the said provisions: “90. Printing, publishing or distributing any news or information.—(1) No person shall print, publish, sell, distribute or in any manner circulate any newspaper, news- sheet or other document or any news or information with the intention of aiding or facilitating gaming. (2) Any person who contravenes the provisions of sub-section (1) shall, on conviction, be punished with imprisonment which may extend to six months and with fine. (3) Any Police Officer may enter and search any place for the purpose of seizing, and may seize all things reasonably suspected to be used or to be intended to be used, for the purpose of committing an offence under this section. (4) Any Police Officer may arrest without warrant any person who contravenes the provisions of sub-section (1). 91. Offences by companies.—(1) If the person committing an offence under section 78, 79 or 90 is a company, the company, as well as every person in charge of, and responsible to the company for the conduct of its business at the time of the commission of the offence shall be deemed to be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly: Provided that, nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such person liable to any punishment if he proves that the - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31572 WP No. 22764 of 2024 offence was committed without his knowledge or that he exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission of such offence. (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), where an offence under section 78, 79, or 90 has been committed by a company and it is proved that the offence has been committed with the consent or connivance of, or that the commission of the offence is attributable to any neglect on the part of any director, manager, secretary or other officer of the company, such director, manager, secretary or other officer shall also be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly. (3) For the purposes of sections 78, 79 and 90, a ‘firm’ shall be deemed to be a person. Explanation.—For the purposes of this section,— (a) “company” means a body corporate, and includes a firm or other association of individuals; and (b) “director” in relation to a firm, means a partner in the firm.” 6. A bare perusal of Sections 90 and 91 of the K.P. Act will indicate that in the event, the person committing the offence is a Company, it was incumbent upon the Police Authorities to arraign the Company also as a party to the proceedings as mandated - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31572 WP No. 22764 of 2024 under Section 91 of the said Act, in relation to the alleged offences under Section 90; in other words, having regard to the fact that the services agreement dated 15.02.2023 was entered into between the said Company, M/s. Wrap2Earn with M/s. Play Ventures NV, it was essential that the said Company, M/s. Wrap2Earn was also arraigned as an accused to the impugned proceedings and failure to do so would vitiate the entire proceedings as against the petitioner and consequently, the impugned proceedings against him deserve to be quashed. 7. A perusal of Section 91 of the K.P. Act will also indicate that in order to proceed against the petitioner, there should be material available with the Police Authorities to establish that he was in charge of and responsible to the company for the conduct of its business at the time of the commission of the alleged offences punishable under Section 90 of the K.P. Act; in the instant case, apart from the fact that the FIR and complaint do not contain any allegations against M/s. Wrap2Earn of which petitioner was merely a sales director and not the executant/signatory to the service agreement entered into between the said Company and M/s. Play Ventures NV, neither the role or involvement of the petitioner - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31572 WP No. 22764 of 2024 stands established by the Police Authorities, who have not placed any material to indicate that he was in charge of, and responsible to the company for the conduct of its business at the time of the commission of the alleged offences and as such, the impugned proceedings qua the petitioner deserves to be quashed on this ground also. 8. 8. As stated supra, in order to attract the offences punishable under Section 90 of the K.P. Act, it is absolutely essential that the respondents establish that the petitioner printed/published/sold/distributed or in any manner circulated any newspaper, news-sheet or other document or any news or information with the intention of aiding or facilitating gaming; in this regard, it is pertinent to note that undisputedly the FIR was registered only against M/s. Play Ventures NV and no allegations are contained in the FIR and complaint as against the petitioner for commission of the alleged offences; further, even after investigation, there is absolutely no material unearthed, collected or established by the Police Authorities, which would disclose commission of the offences punishable under Section 90 of the K.P. Act by the petitioner. Viewed from this angle also, if the entire - 9 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:31572 WP No. 22764 of 2024 complaint, FIR, charge sheet material, statements of witnesses and documents etc., are examined in its entirety, necessary ingredients constituting the aforesaid offences by the petitioner have not been established by the respondents and consequently, the impugned proceedings qua the petitioner deserve to be quashed. 9. In view of the aforesaid facts and circumstances, I am of the view that continuation of the impugned proceedings qua the petitioner would amount to abuse of process of law warranting interference by this Court in the present petition. 10. In the result, I pass the following: ORDER i) The petition is allowed. ii) The impugned criminal proceedings in C.C.No.2667/2023 (arising out of Crime No.17/2023 registered by respondent No.1-Police), pending before the Addl. Civil Judge and JMFC, Devanahalli, are hereby quashed. Sd/- (S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR) JUDGE BSV/BMC List No.: 3