A single-judge bench of Andhra Pradesh High Court consisting of Honorable Justice K. Suresh Reddy, hearing the criminal petition filed under Section -482 of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 seeking to quash the proceedings against the petitioners/accused Nos. 1 to 5.
Facts of the Case
In this case, the petitioners/ accused Nos. 1 to 5 are charged under sections 273, 188 IPC, sections 58, 59, and 63 of the Food Safety Standards Act, 2006. The criminal petition is filed to quash the proceedings in C.C NO. 243 of 2019 on the file of the Court of Additional Judicial first -class Magistrate, Addanki, Prakasam district, against the petitioner in connection with Cr. NO. 18 OF 2018 on the file of Martur police station.
The reliance has been made on the common order passed by the Court dated 18-12-2019, in criminal petition nos. 5421 of 2019 batch, holding that the tobacco does not fall under the category of food, as specified in Section 3(i)(j) of the Act. Thus the F.I.R. is not permissible. The reliance is also put upon the common order, dated 5-03-2020 passed by the bench under criminal petition Nos. 5103 of 2019, quashing the F.I.R., it is a request to quash the proceedings.
Contentions
The learned counsel of the petitioners lead to stress on the order passed by the bench to quash the F.I.R. So, the counsel said the proceedings against the petitioner should also be quashed.
On the other side, the Public prosecutor opposed the relief for which the petitioner counsel argued. But the prosecutor also could not deny the fact of a criminal petition filed under Section-482 based on an analogy put forth by the petitioners in the High Court.
Court’s Decision
The Court held that looking to the undisputed fact that the F.I.R has been quashed in similar cases. The proceedings and arrest will be undesirable.
Thus, the Court allowed the criminal petition, and all the further proceedings are quashed; no further action is necessary in this case.
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