PRAYER
Criminal Original Petition filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure praying to call for the records relating to the case in Crime No.224 of 2022 on the file of first respondent herein and quash the same as illegal and abuse of process of law.
- The second respondent gave a complaint as against five accused persons on the ground that they are charging exorbitant interest. Insofar the petitioner is concerned, the allegation made in the First Information Report is that the second respondent had borrowed a sum of Rs.1,00,000/- from the petitioner and had repaid a sum of Rs.50,000/- within a year and in spite of the same, the petitioner is said to have harassed the second respondent demanding exorbitant interest of Rs.4,000/- p.m. and threatened him. Based on this complaint, a First Information Report came to be registered against the petitioner and others in Crime No.224 of 2022 for offence u/s.4 of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Charging Exorbitant Interest Act, 2003.
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There is no dispute with regard to the fact that the second respondent had borrowed from the petitioner. It is the specific case of the second respondent that he had borrowed a sum of Rs.1,00,000/-. The petitioner also admits the fact that the second respondent had paid a sum of Rs.42,000/- to the petitioner and what remained was the balance sum of Rs.58,000/-. For this amount, the wife of the second respondent had stood as a guarantor and had issued the cheque to the petitioner. When this cheque was deposited, it was returned with an endorsement “insufficient funds”. Pursuant to the same, the petitioner has also initiated proceedings before the Judicial Magistrate, Paramathi, in STC No.1172 of 2022 for offence u/s.138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act.
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It is also seen from records that the petitioner does not come within the category of money lender as defined under the Act. There is not even a prima facie case against the petitioner to attract offence u/s.4 of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Charging Exorbitant Interest Act, 2003. That apart, proceedings have already been initiated u/s.138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act before the concerned Court. When the transaction has taken place through a negotiable instrument, viz., a cheque, there is no question of bringing that transaction within the scope of Section 4 of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Charging Exorbitant Interest Act, 2003.
PARTY: Abdul @ S.Abdul Rahman S/o.Shajahan … Petitioner vs. 1.The State represented by The Inspector of Police, Velur Police Station, Namakkal. Crime No.224 of 2022 – Crl.O.P.No.18884 of 2022 and Crl.M.P.No.12485 of 2022 – DATED : 02.08.2023 – CORAM THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE N.ANAND VENKATESH.
https://www.mhc.tn.gov.in/judis/index.php/casestatus/viewpdf/1060226
Abdul @ S.Abdul Rahman vs. The State
