CHANDIGARH: The Punjab and Haryana high court has made it clear that while hearing an application filed by a public prosecutor for withdrawal of prosecution in a criminal case, the trial court judge should see if the application for withdrawal is free from any taint of mala fides. The HC passed these orders while setting aside the orders passed by Rohtak courts dismissing the application filed by public prosecutor for withdrawal of criminal cases registered during the February 2016 Jat agitation for reservation.
“Moreover, when the protest obviously was peaceful except the protesters blocking the highway, as a measure to ventilate their claim for reservation in public employment. Therefore, it was inappropriate for both the courts to conclude that yet the interest of justice would not be subserved, in case the application is allowed. It appears that the afore inference has been drawn on surmisal grounds, and, appears to be a sequel of both the courts below assessing the quality of the evidence, and, endeavouring to discover therefrom whether the prosecution case would terminate in a conviction or in acquittal, assessments whereof, are, expostulated in the verdict rather, to be forbidden or not required to be made.”
Justice Sureshwar Thakur has passed these orders while hearing a plea filed by Ramesh Dalal, a lawyer and farmer from Rohtak district of Haryana. The petitioner, along with some other persons, was booked on February 15, 2016 by Sampla police station for obstruction of public way and related charges and under the National Highway Act for blocking the road during the Jat stir for reservation.
