Uttarakhand High Court
C528/1274/2025 on 9 March, 2026
2026:UHC:1499
Office Notes,
reports, orders
or proceedings
SL.
Date or directions COURT'S OR JUDGE'S ORDERS
No.
and Registrar's
order with
Signatures
IA 1 of 2026 (Compounding Application)
In
C528 No.22 of 2026
With
IA 4 of 2025 (Compounding Application)
In
C528 No.1274 of 2026
With
IA 1 of 2025 (Compounding Application)
In
C528 No.1275 of 2025
With
IA 6 of 2025 (Compounding Application)
In
C-528 No.1276 of 2025
Hon'ble Alok Mahra, J.
Mr. Deep Prakash Bhatt, learned
counsel in C-528 No.22 of 2026, Mr. R.S.
Sammal, learned counsel in C-528 No.1274
of 2025 and C-528 No.1276 of 2026 and
Mr. Amit Kapri, learned counsel in C-528
No.1275 of 2025 for the applicants.
2. Mr. K.S. Bora, learned Deputy A.G.
along with Mr. Dinesh Chauhan, learned
Brief Holder for the State.
3. Mr. Amit Kapri, learned counsel in
C528 No.22 of 2026, C-528 No.1274 of
2025, C-528 No.1276 of 2025 and Mr. R.S.
Sammal, learned counsel in C-528 No.1275
of 2025 for respondents.
4. Present C-528 applications arise out
of the same dispute between the parties
and involve identical facts as well as
common questions of law. It also transpires
that cross-F.I.R.s have been lodged by the
parties against each other. Since all the
2026:UHC:1499
applications stem from the same incident
and the parties are common, they are being
decided together by this common judgment
and order.
5. The C-528 No. 22 of 2026 has been
filed for quashing the charge-sheet,
cognizance/summoning order dated
21.05.2026 passed by the learned Juvenile
Justice Board, Pithoragarh, District
Pithoragarh as well as the entire
proceedings of Criminal Investigation No.
24 of 2025 (Challani Report No. 05 of 2025)
arising out of Case Crime No. 107 of 2024
for the offences punishable under Sections
323, 504, 506, 147, 354, 509 of the I.P.C.
and Section 7/8 of the Protection of
Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012.
6. The C-528 No. 1274 of 2025 and C-
528 No. 1275 of 2025 have been filed for
quashing the charge-sheet and
cognizance/summoning orders dated
14.11.2024 and 21.06.2025 passed by the
learned Sessions Judge (POCSO),
Pithoragarh as well as the entire
proceedings of Special Sessions Trial No. 52
of 2024 and Sessions Trial No. 26 of 2025
arising out of F.I.R./Case Crime No. 107 of
2024 and F.I.R./Case Crime No. 102 of
2024 for the offences punishable under
Sections 323, 504 and 506 of the I.P.C.
7. The C-528 No. 1276 of 2025 has been
filed for quashing the charge-sheet,
cognizance/summoning order dated
03.01.2025 passed by the learned Special
Session Judge (POCSO), Pithoragarh and
the entire proceedings of Special Sessions
Trial No. 01 of 2025 arising out of Case
2026:UHC:1499
Crime No. 107 of 2024 for the offences
punishable under Sections 323, 354, 506,
509 I.P.C. and Section 7/8 of the POCSO
Act.
8. Learned counsel for the applicants
would submit that the dispute between the
parties was purely personal in nature and
arose out of a sudden altercation between
the parties. It is further submitted that with
the intervention of respectable persons of
the society and family members, the parties
have amicably settled their dispute.
Consequently, the complainants do not
wish to prosecute the applicants any
further. In support of the said submission,
compromise applications duly supported by
affidavits of the parties have been placed on
record, praying that the entire criminal
proceedings be quashed in terms of the
settlement arrived at between the parties.
9. The applicants as well as the
complainants are present before the Court
through Video Conferencing. Upon
interaction, respondent no.2/ complainant
Mohit Nagarkoti in C-528 No. 22 of 2026,
C-528 No. 1274 of 2025 and C-528 No.
1276 of 2025, and respondent nos.2 to
4/complainants in C-528 No. 1275 of 2025
have affirmed that the matter has been
amicably settled between the parties and
that they do not wish to pursue the
criminal proceedings against the applicants
any further. It is also stated that cross-
cases were lodged against each other due to
misunderstanding and heat of the moment
and that the parties now wish to maintain
cordial relations in future.
2026:UHC:1499
10. Learned State counsel has opposed
the prayer for quashing on the ground that
some of the offences alleged in the F.I.R. are
non-compoundable in nature. However, he
does not dispute the factum of compromise
entered into between the parties.
11. This Court considered the
submissions advanced by the learned
counsel for the parties and perused the
material available on record.
12. It is well settled that the inherent
powers of the High Court under Section 482
Cr.P.C. can be exercised to quash criminal
proceedings even in respect of non-
compoundable offences where the dispute
between the parties is essentially private
and personal in nature and continuation of
the criminal proceedings would amount to
abuse of the process of the Court.
13. The Hon’ble Supreme Court in Gian
Singh vs. State of Punjab (2012) 10 SCC
303, Narinder Singh vs. State of Punjab
(2014) 6 SCC 466, and Parbatbhai Aahir vs.
State of Gujarat (2017) 9 SCC 641 has laid
down that in cases arising out of personal
or private disputes, particularly where the
parties have settled the matter amicably
and the possibility of conviction is remote
and bleak, the High Court may exercise its
inherent powers to secure the ends of
justice by quashing the criminal
proceedings.
14. The Apex Court has further held that
while exercising such powers, the Court
must consider the nature and gravity of the
offence and whether the offence has any
serious impact on society. If the dispute is
2026:UHC:1499
overwhelmingly civil or personal in nature
and the victim has willingly entered into a
compromise, continuation of criminal
proceedings would serve no useful purpose.
15. In the present case, it appears that the
dispute between the parties arose out of a
personal altercation and cross-cases have
been lodged against each other. The parties
have now amicably resolved their dispute
and the complainants themselves have
expressed their unwillingness to pursue the
matter further. The compromise appears to
be voluntary and without any coercion.
16. Having regard to the nature of
allegations, the fact that the parties have
settled their disputes amicably and the law
laid down by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in
the aforementioned judgments, this Court
is of the opinion that continuation of the
criminal proceedings would serve no useful
purpose and would only result in abuse of
the process of the Court.
17. Accordingly, all the present C-528
applications are allowed. The charge-
sheets, cognizance/summoning orders and
the entire criminal proceedings arising out
of the aforesaid cases are hereby quashed
qua the applicants.
18. Pending applications, if any, shall
stand disposed of.
MAM
Digitally signed by MAMTA
RANI
DN: c=IN, o=HIGH COURT OF
UTTARAKHAND, ou=HIGH
COURT OF UTTARAKHAND,
2.5.4.20=6a812005bebfcf46f2
TA
44f3e584af1449e430ef900bf0
9a6d67ebbd642671329b,
postalCode=263001,
st=Uttarakhand,
(Alok Mahra, J.)
serialNumber=5de1751a4f1d9
RANI
cabfd54852c9e68911ca8b66d
d26690a191648ab5d8dd004e
f0, cn=MAMTA RANI
09.03.2026
Date: 2026.03.11 18:40:23
+05’30’
Mamta