Authority: Calcutta High Court, Criminal Revisional Jurisdiction, Hon'ble Justice Shampa Dutt (Paul)
Order Date: 15 September 2026
Case Overview
- Petitioners Amrapali Bose and Dipanjan Ray @ Dipayan Roy filed revisional applications (CRR 4125/4126 of 2024) seeking quash of Complaint Case No. C‑1610 of 2018 pending before the Judicial Magistrate, 7th Court, Alipore, South 24 Parganas, which alleged offences under Sections 406, 415, 418, 420, 506 and 120B IPC.
- The complaint originated from a 2017 consumer forum case (CC/149/2017) concerning the purchase of a flat from Amrapali Hirise Private Limited, represented by director Malay Bose; petitioners were accused as director and employee but asserted they never entered into any sale agreement.
- Allegations against petitioners were limited to being present at a restaurant on 16 June 2017 and allegedly assuring the complainant of refund within three months; the core dispute was civil in nature, relating to recovery of money for a flat purchase.
- The bench examined extensive Supreme Court jurisprudence (Rikhab Birani & Anr., V.Y. Jose, Sharif Ahmed, etc.) emphasizing that a contractual breach without fraudulent intent does not satisfy the ingredients of cheating, criminal breach of trust, or criminal intimidation, and that criminal process should not be used to pressure civil claims.
- The court concluded that the material on record did not prima facie establish any of the alleged offences and that proceeding would constitute an abuse of process.
Final Outcome
- The proceedings in Complaint Case No. C‑1610 of 2018 are quashed with respect to petitioners Amrapali Bose and Dipanjan Ray @ Dipayan Roy.
- All connected applications, if any, are disposed of; any interim orders are vacated.
- The judgment is to be forwarded to the trial magistrate for necessary compliance, and a certified copy to be supplied upon request.
Topics: Court Quash Order, Real Estate Dispute, Criminal vs Civil Jurisdiction