- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:34113 CRL.P No. 11828 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 1ST DAY OF SEPTEMBER, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SACHIN SHANKAR MAGADUM CRIMINAL PETITION NO.11828 OF 2025 BETWEEN: CHANDRASHEKAR N C S/O LATE CHANNIGAPPA SHETTY N C AGED ABOUT 75 YEARS R/O MYSORE NAGAMANGALA ROAD NAGAMANGALA TOWN MANDYA DISTARICT – 571432 …PETITIONER (BY SRI GURUDATH B S, ADVOCATE) AND: 1. STATE OF KARNATAKA BY NAGAMANGALA TOWN REP. BY SPP HIGH COURT BUILDING BENGALURU-01 2. YASHWANTHA KUMAR M AGED ABOUT 21 YEARS R/AT WARD NO.1 SUBHASHNAGAR NAGAMAGNALA TOWN MANDYA DISTRICT-571432 …RESPONDENTS (BY SMT. RASHMI JADAV, ADDL. SPP FOR R1) Digitally signed by DEVIKA M Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:34113 CRL.P No. 11828 of 2025 THIS CRL.P IS FILED U/S.482 (FILED U/S.528 BNSS) CR.P.C PRAYING TO QUASH THE CRIME NO.59/2025 ARISING IN FIR NO.196/2025 ON THE FILE OF THE V ADDL. DISTRICT AND SESSIONS JUDGE AT MANDYA AS PER ANNEXURE C AND ETC. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ADMISSION, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SACHIN SHANKAR MAGADUM ORAL ORDER This petition seeks quashing of the proceedings in Crime No. 59/2025 registered for offences punishable under Sections 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(s) of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. These provisions specifically criminalise (i) intentional insult or intimidation with intent to humiliate a member of the SC/ST community in any place within public view, and (ii) abuse by caste name acts that strike at the dignity and equality of members of the SC/ST communities and which the statute treats with utmost seriousness. 2. The FIR alleges that respondent No.2, while acting under directions of a superior officer to remove unauthorised occupation and thus in discharge of official duty, was deliberately abused by the petitioner. It is alleged that the - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:34113 CRL.P No. 11828 of 2025 petitioner, while speaking on a mobile phone to a third person, used the complainant’s caste name in a derogatory manner. The written complaint is accompanied by a video recording said to capture the incident, which formed the basis for registration of the crime. Prima facie, such conduct, if established, does not merely offend an individual; it undermines the authority of lawful public action, amounts to obstruction of the performance of official duties, and perpetuates the very caste-based humiliation the Act was enacted to eradicate. 3. Though learned counsel for the petitioner sought to persuade this Court that no offence is made out, this Court is mindful that at the stage of considering a prayer for quashing, a detailed appreciation of evidence is neither warranted nor permissible. Here, the complaint is specific, the allegations directly invoke the statutory ingredients of Sections 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(s), and there is a contemporaneous electronic record (video) tendered with the complaint. Whether the incident occurred “within public view,” the context, and the authenticity and evidentiary value of the electronic material are matters for investigation and, if necessary, trial. In these circumstances, - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:34113 CRL.P No. 11828 of 2025 and having regard to the gravity and societal impact of the alleged act, no indulgence is warranted under the Court’s inherent jurisdiction. 4. Accordingly, the petition stands dismissed. In view of the dismissal, any pending I.A., if any, does not survive for consideration. Sd/- (SACHIN SHANKAR MAGADUM) JUDGE SN List No.: 1 Sl No.: 39