17.8.2026 19 BD. CRR 3861 of 2025 With CRAN 1 of 2026 Rajeev Baid & Ors. Vs. The State of West Bengal & Anr. Mr. Pradeep Jourajka Mr. Ayush Singhania …for the Petitioners Mr. Pawan Kr. Gupta Mr. Somnath Roy Mr. Santanu Sett Ms. Sofia Nesar …for the O.P. no. 2 Mr. Imran Siddiqui …for the State Report submitted on behalf of the State dated 03.08.2026 is taken on record. The petitioners/accused persons have preferred the instant application seeking quashment of the FIR being No. 30 of 2013 registered with Lake Police Station, corresponding to CGR 402 of 2013 presently pending before learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, 4th Court, Alipore under sections 498A/406/324/34 of the IPC read with sections 3 and 4 of Dowry Prohibition Act. Being aggrieved by the aforesaid criminal proceeding, learned counsel for the petitioner submits that petitioner no. 1 and the opposite party no. 2 got married on July 3, 2003 and they are blessed with a female child. Subsequently, dispute and difference arose among the parties resulting to initiation of several criminal and civil proceedings in West Bengal as well as in Punjab including the present criminal proceeding. 2 Upon completion of investigation a charge-sheet has also been filed against the petitioners herein on 24th April, 2014. Meanwhile, in furtherance of the proceeding being CRM-M- 45476-2024, the Hon’ble Punjab and Haryana High Court has referred the dispute between the parties to mediation and the petitioner no. 1 herein on one hand and opposite party no. 2 on the other hand entered into a settlement agreement on January 8, 2025 before the Mediation and Conciliation Centre, Punjab and Haryana High Court, Chandigarh, inter alia on the terms that the parties will take steps for dissolution of marriage and the present FIR bearing No. 30 of 2013 would be sought to be quashed. Learned counsel appearing for the petitioners in this context submits that since the dispute by and between the parties in the impugned proceeding is purely a private one and it arose out of temporary misunderstanding between the opposite party no. 2 and the petitioners and since no public property nor any public policy in involved in the nature of allegations made against the petitioners, the opposite party no. 2 has agreed to withdraw the aforesaid proceeding and has decided not to support the imputations leveled in the complaint before the trial court. Therefore, further continuance of the impugned criminal proceeding would amount to abuse of the process of the court. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the opposite party no. 2 Mr. Gupta, on instruction submits that in terms of the settlement arrived at by and between the parties, the defacto- complainant has decided not to proceed further with the said 3 criminal proceeding and as such defacto-complainant also prays for quashment of the said proceeding. Learned counsel, Mr. Siddiqui, appearing on behalf of the State placed the report and leaves the prayer made by the petitioners to the discretion of the Court. Having heard learned counsel for the petitioners and both the opposite parties it appears that the dispute between the parties had arisen due to matrimonial discord. However, the parties have amicably settled all their disputes and both the petitioners and the opposite party no. 2 have jointly made prayer before this Court for quashment of the said criminal proceeding. In view of such circumstances, I find that the chance of conviction at the end trial, of even if the proceeding is allowed to continue, is bleak and therefore no fruitful purpose will be served in allowing the criminal proceeding to proceed any further. I also find that continuation of the impugned criminal proceeding in spite of the fact that parties have settled all their disputes, only on the ground that some of the sections are non- compoundable, would amount to abuse of process of law and it would amount to unnecessary wastage of judicial time. In view of above, CRR 3861 of 2025 is allowed. The impugned proceeding being CGR 402 of 2013 presently pending before learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, 4th Court, Alipore, is hereby quashed. Connected application, is also disposed of. 4 Urgent Photostat certified copy of this order, duly applied for, be given to the parties upon compliance of all requisite formalities. (Dr. Ajoy Kumar Mukherjee, J.)