Kolkata: Observing that penal statutes cannot be stretched by implication, the Calcutta High Court quashed criminal proceedings against a petitioner in a case concerning alleged forgery and unlawful re-entry into a shop room following an eviction.
The bench of Justice Ajoy Kumar Mukherjee held that the case lacked sufficient material to proceed under criminal law.
The case originated from a complaint by a property owner who had purchased premises on Kali Krishna Tagore Street, Kolkata. The complainant had earlier obtained an ex-parte eviction decree against the petitioner, a tenant in a shop room on the property. Vacant possession was secured through court execution in December 2018.
According to the complainant, the petitioner and others allegedly re-entered the premises using a forged letter dated December 20, 2018, which stated that both parties had reached an amicable settlement and that possession had been voluntarily returned to the petitioner. The complainant denied signing any such letter and alleged criminal forgery.
The petitioner’s counsel argued that the letter reflected a genuine agreement facilitated by the Posta Bazar Merchants’ Association. She submitted evidence of cheque payment of Rs 80,519 and rent payment of Rs 4,000 for December 2018, asserting that the complainant accepted these payments and thus supported the existence of the settlement. During the hearing, the court examined whether the allegations constituted a prima facie case of criminal forgery. It found no material evidence indicating that the petitioner had authored or procured the alleged forged document. The original letter had not been seized or sent for forensic examination, and the issue of its authenticity was already under consideration in a pending civil suit.
The court concluded that continuing criminal proceedings on the same facts would prejudice the pending civil case and amount to an abuse of the legal process. It held that in the absence of direct evidence connecting Goyal to the alleged forgery, the criminal case should not proceed.