Extracted from the PDF above. The PDF is authoritative.
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THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) (ITANAGAR BENCH) Case No. : Crl.Petn./191/2026 Tana Sham Tara Son of Shri Tana Roleshwar Tana Tara, resident of Gumto-II, PO and PS Doimukh, Papum Pare District, Arunachal Pradesh. 2: Smti Taba Julie Age: Occupation : Wife of Shri Tana Sham Tara resident of Gumto-III PO and PS Doimukh Papum Pare District Arunachal Pradesh VERSUS The State of AP represented by the PP of AP
Advocate for the Petitioner : Tabit Tapak, T Tabing,Bebeng Siboh,aso d Advocate for the Respondent : P P of AP,
BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BUDI HABUNG
ORDER Date : 22.07.2026
Heard Mr. Tabit Tapak, learned counsel for the petitioners. Also heard Mr. Token Ete, learned Addl. Public Prosecutor, Arunachal Pradesh. 2. This petition under Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita(BNSS), 2023, has been jointly filed by the accused husband and the informant wife, praying for quashing and setting aside of G.R. Case No. 492/2018
Page No.# 2/5 arising out of Itanagar Women P.S. Case No. 61/2018 registered under Sections 498A/323 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, pending trial in the Court of learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, Yupia. 3. The brief facts of the case is that based on a written First Information Report(FIR) lodged by the petitioner No. 2/wife of the petitioner No. 1, before the Officer-in-Charge, Itanagar Women Police Station, on 13.07.2018, against her husband/petitioner No. 1, alleging, mental and physical tortures inflicted on her by the petitioner No. 1/husband; the aforementioned police case was registered. Upon completion of the investigation, the police submitted Charge Sheet No. 13/2021 dated 05.02.2021 against the petitioner No. 1, for commission of the alleged offence. The learned Magistrate, Yupia, took cognizance of the case and now, the same is pending for consideration of charge before the Court of learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, Yupia. 4. The learned counsel for the petitioners submits that during the pendency of the case; the informant-wife and the accused-husband, in the greater interest of their family, and on the advise of their well-wishers and relatives, have amicably resolved their dispute and formally, executed a deed of settlement on 20.07.2026, wherein, the informant- wife has categorically stated that she has forgiven her accused-husband and after the occurence of the incident, they are living together happily and she has no further grievance against the accused- petitioner No. 1 and therefore, she does not want to pursue with the matter any further. 5.
5. The learned counsel for the petitioners further submits that since the matter has been amicably resolved between the parties, the informant-petitioner No. 2 has no further grievance against the accused-petitioner No. 1; there is no scope
Page No.# 3/5 of conviction in the case and in such a situation, further proceeding of the case would be a futile exercise and it would only cause harassment to both the accused and the informant and therefore, the learned counsel for the petitioners prays for quashing and setting aside of the proceeding of G.R. Case No. 492/2018 arising out of Itanagar Women P.S. Case No. 61/2018 registered under Sections 498A/323 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, pending trial in the Court of learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, Yupia. 6. Mr. Ete, learned Addl. Public Prosecutor, fairly submits that as the matter has amicably been settled between the informant and the accused, being husband and wife, and the allegations in the First Information Report(FIR) itself indicates that the dispute arose out of a matrimonial dispute between them, and also taking into account that a mutual deed of settlement, dated 20.07.2026, has been executed between both the parties, wherein, the informant-wife has stated that she has no further grievance against the accused-hsuband and does not wish to pursue with the matter; he has no objection if the prayer of the petitioners is allowed. 7. I have heard the submissions advanced by the learned counsels for the parties. 8. It appears that the present case arose out of a dispute between the wife and the husband due to the physical and mental tortures inflicted by the accused- petitioner No. 1 on his wife-petitioner No. 2, because of which, there has been a marital discord between both the petitioners resulting in lodging of the aforesaid police case by the petitioner No. 2 against the petitioner No. 1. However, subsequently, the matter has amicably been settled between the parties by formally executing a mutual deed of settlement on 20.07.2026, wherein, the
Page No.# 4/5 informant-petitioner No. 1 has categorically stated that she has forgiven her accused-petitioner No. 2 and hence, she has no further grievance against him and does not wish to pursue the matter any further.
Under the circumstances, it appears that the dispute is purely personal in nature and has arisen out of a marital discord between the husband-petitioner No. 1 and the wife-petitioner No.
2. It also appears that the dispute does not affect the society at large. Given the
facts and circumstances of the case, there appears to have been only a remote possibility of conviction and thus, if the proceeding is allowed to be continued; it would only cause harassment to both the parties which would rather amount to an abuse of the process of law.
9. The Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of State of Madhya Pradesh v. Laxmi Narayan & ors., reported in (2019) 5 SCC 688 held that the High Court in exercise of inherent power conferred under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, can quash the criminal proceedings even for non-compoundable offences which are private in nature and do no have serious impact on society on the ground that there is a settlement/compromise between the victim and the offender.
10. In the light of the principle laid down by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of Gian Singh v. State of Punjab & anr., reported in (2012) 10 SCC 303; Narinder Singh & ors. v. State of Punjab & anr., reported in (2014) 6 SCC 466, as well as in the case of Laxmi Narayan (supra), wherein the Court has permitted quashing of the proceedings even in non-compoundable offence in cases involved in private disputes which do not affect the society at large, this Court is of the opinion that this is a fit case where inherent power under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973/528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, should be exercised to secure the ends of justice.
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11. Accordingly, the proceedings in G.R. Case No. 492/2018 arising out of Itanagar Women P.S. Case No. 61/2018 registered under Sections 498A/323 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860, pending trial in the Court of learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, Yupia, against the petitioner No. 1 Shri Tana Sham Tara, is hereby quashed.
12. In terms of the above, the instant joint petition filed by the petitioners under Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, stands allowed and disposed of.
JUDGE Comparing Assistant