31.WP.1450.2026.doc HARSHADA H. SAWANT (P.A.) IN IN THE THE HIGH HIGH COURT COURT OF OF JUDICATURE JUDICATURE AT AT BOMBAY BOMBAY CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO.1450 OF 2026 Shree Sada Shankar Kamadi .. Petitioner Versus The State of Maharashtra and Anr. .. Respondents ....................  Mr. Pradeep Dube a/w. Mr. Mandar Joshi, Ms. Devanshi Joshi, Advocates for Petitioner.  Ms. Sangeeta E. Phad, APP for Respondent No.1. ................... CORAM : MILIND N. JADHAV, J. DATE : SEPTEMBER 28, 2026 P.C. : 1. Heard Mr. Dube, learned Advocate for Petitioner and Ms. Phad, learned APP for Respondent. 2. On 17.09.2026, the following order came to be passed:- “1. Heard Mr. Dube, learned Advocate for Petitioner and Mr. Karmakar, learned APP for Respondent – State. 2. Mr. Dube, learned Advocate would submit that Petitioner is working as a Sub-Registrar and a public servant. He would submit that in the course of his duty, Petitioner has verified a Power of Attorney. The protagonist and the antagonist in the present case are the husband and wife. The husband has accused the wife and her associates of having prepared a false Power of Attorney and having used it for seeking a loan. Since the said Power of Attorney was registered in the presence of Petitioner before me when he was the Sub-Registrar of Assurances, the Petitioner has also been indicted in the supplementary charge-sheet in the present case. 3. In the first charge-sheet filed, the Sub-Registrar was cited as a witness. There are two principal points advanced by Mr. Dube. He would submit that before prosecuting the Petitioner, sanction as contemplated by the provisions of Section 197(1)(b) has not been obtained and therefore it vitiates the criminal proceedings filed against the Petitioner. 4. Next he would submit that the sanction has been infact denied by the Competent Authority. In that regard, he has placed 1 of 4 31.WP.1450.2026.doc before the Court additional Affidavit on behalf of Petitioner dated 22.04.2026, in which denial of sanction has been appended at page No.10 of the said reasoning. 5. Once the aforesaid issues are prima facie seen, Petition deserves to be allowed. Admittedly, when the Petitioner is a government servant, before filing any prosecution, sanction of the Competent Authority is a mandatory requirement. 6. Mr. Karmakar is directed to take appropriate instructions and accordingly apprise the Court so that the Petition can be disposed of tomorrow. 7. Stand over to 18th September 2026. To be placed under the caption ‘For Orders’.” 3. Carrying forward today, it prima facie seems that the additional affidavit dated 22.04.2026 which is referred to in paragraph No.4 of the aforesaid order for the reasons mentioned therein prima facie states that the sanction should not be given for prosecuting the Petitioner before the Court. The Petitioner is a Government servant, public servant who in the course of his duty registered the Power of Attorney which according to the prosecution, was a false and fake document having been prepared by the principal accused persons for seeking a loan from a financial institution. 4. The prosecution has not been able to prima facie show the complicity of the Petitioner in the alleged crime. Neither the prosecution has shown that the Petitioner is a beneficiary. In fact, the record prima facie shows that the Petitioner himself initiated action under Sections 82 and 83 of the Registration Act, 1908 for seeking appropriate steps through the concerned Investigation Officer, the moment he realized about the aforesaid incongruousness with regard 2 of 4 31.WP.1450.2026.doc to the subject Power of Attorney. The Investigating Officer did not take cognizance of the Petitioner’s own complaint filed. Rather, prosecution was launched and Petitioner was therefore made a witness in accordance with the first charge-sheet filed. The second charge-sheet also does not mention the Petitioner but after taking cognizance, the Petitioner has now been arraigned as an accused. 5. Ms. Phad would vehemently submit that registration of a fabricated Power of Attorney by the Petitioner when he is supposed to scrutinize each and every element thereof was required to be done and that not having been done, he has been indicted. I prima facie may agree to a certain extent with the submissions made by the learned APP but in the present case, prosecution has not been able to show any precise connivance or collusion of the Petitioner with the principal accused persons qua the subject Power of Attorney which came to be registered. 6. It is infact the Petitioner who on his own volition after realizing that there was some mischief carried out addressed a complaint to the Investigating Officer concerned. The provisions of Section 82 of the Registration Act, 1908 qualify stringent penalties for individuals who commit fraudulent acts, provide false information, impersonate others, or abet offences under the Act. 7. In the present case, only to the extent of abetment the 3 of 4 31.WP.1450.2026.doc Petitioner can be held liable but that also has not been shown by the prosecution. It is precisely on this very material that State Authorities have infact recommended that sanction should be denied which is evident from the additional affidavit dated 22.04.2025. 8. In that view of the matter, I am agreeable with the submissions made by Mr. Dube for allowing the present Petition. The Petition, therefore, stands allowed in terms of prayer clause (b) which reads thus:- “b) This Hon’ble Court be pleased to quash the Charge Sheet bearing C.C.No. 3409/PW/2024 pending before the Ld. 24th Addl. Chief Judicial Magistrate Borivali registered under section 420, 465, 467, 468, 471 and 120(b) of Indian Penal Code qua the Present Petitioner.” 9. Order of cognizance dated 26.06.2025 appended at page No.65 of the Petition is also quashed and set aside. All further consequential actions are quashed and set aside. 10. Writ Petition stands allowed and disposed of. H. H. SAWANT [ MILIND N. JADHAV, J. ] 4 of 4 HARSHADA HANUMANT SAWANT Digitally signed by HARSHADA HANUMANT SAWANT Date: 2026.09.28 19:28:11 +0530