In a scathing order, the Allahabad High Court has quashed criminal proceedings against a man embroiled in a long-running land dispute, severely criticizing the police investigation for listing deceased individuals as prosecution witnesses. The court termed this a clear reflection of "non-application of mind" that rendered the entire probe "unreliable and legally unsustainable."
A Probe Built on Grave Irregularities
Justice Shekhar Kumar Yadav was hearing a petition challenging a trial court's order from 2023 that had initiated criminal proceedings, including issuing summons based on a chargesheet. The court's scrutiny revealed shocking lapses. The chargesheet filed in February 2023 listed several witnesses, five of whom had died years before the investigation even began.
"This fact conclusively establishes that the investigation is faulty, unfair, and biased," the court observed. It stated that continuing the case under such circumstances would amount to an abuse of the judicial process and lead to a miscarriage of justice. The inclusion of dead persons as witnesses, without any explanation, struck at the very root of the case's credibility.
Origins in a Decades-Old Land Dispute
The case has its roots in agricultural land leases granted to 282 individuals back in 1997. While these allotments were initially approved, complaints emerged in 2016 alleging ineligibility of some allottees and illegal transfer of land meant for Scheduled Caste communities through forged documents. However, no First Information Report (FIR) was filed immediately.
The situation escalated in July 2022, when a revenue inspector finally lodged an FIR alleging forgery, criminal conspiracy, and illegal land transfer. Police conducted an investigation and filed a chargesheet against multiple individuals, including the petitioner. Based on this, the trial court issued summons in 2023.
The petitioner's counsel argued that the proceedings were illegal as the petitioner was not even named in the original 2022 FIR. The High Court agreed, noting that criminal prosecution cannot be based on assumptions, especially when the FIR is silent about the accused.
Court Highlights Fabricated Nature of Investigation
Justice Yadav's order pointed out the impossibility of the investigating officer recording statements from people who were already dead. The fact that they were still shown as witnesses exposed the "fabricated nature of the investigation."
The court also noted the delayed action by the state, weakening the prosecution's case. It suggested the proceedings seemed like an "afterthought," initiated belatedly without a proper foundational civil adjudication on the land dispute.
Ultimately, the High Court quashed all criminal proceedings against the petitioner. It firmly concluded that allowing the case to continue would result in a miscarriage of justice and represent an abuse of the legal process, delivering a stern reminder about the standards expected in criminal investigations.
