Criminal action only when there is prima facie material: HC

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has said that there should be prima facie material to initiate criminal proceedings against any person or else it would amount to abuse of the process of law.

Quashing a criminal case against Vipul Prakash Patil, an agriculturist from Sangli in Maharashtra, the High Court in its recent order said: “This Court is of the considered opinion that in the absence of any prima facie documentary proof to hook in the present petitioner in the alleged fraud, the very registration of complaint as against the present petitioner is unnecessary and has resulted in abuse of process of Court.”

The Chikkodi police had registered the case against Patil based on a complaint lodged by a person named Shivananda Magaduma under Section 9 of Karnataka

Protection of Interest Depositors in Financial Establishment Act, 2004 (KPID Act) and under Sections 406 and 420 (cheating) of the IPC.

It was alleged that Patil and three others had promised a return of 10 installments of Rs 15,000 each if an investment of Rs one lakh was made.