The Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has quashed a First Information Report (FIR) against an 85-year-old man, Nanak Chand, who was accused of sexual harassment and other offenses by his daughter-in-law. Justice Rajesh Sekhri termed the allegations "absurd, inherently improbable, and actuated with malice," and stated that the FIR was a disguised attempt to give a criminal texture to a civil property dispute.
The case arose from a complaint filed by Chand's daughter-in-law in September 2022, in which she alleged that Chand and his two younger sons forcibly entered her house, assaulted her, tore her clothes, outraged her modesty, and stole cash and gold ornaments. Based on this complaint, the police registered an FIR under Sections 457, 382, 354, 427, 323, and 506 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Chand and his sons petitioned the High Court under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (now Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita), seeking to quash the FIR. They argued that the case was a result of a long-standing family property dispute. Chand had disinherited his eldest son, the complainant's husband, in 2018 after discovering that he had allegedly tricked him into signing a will and power of attorney. This led to multiple civil and criminal proceedings, including a domestic violence case that was later settled before a Lok Adalat, and counter-FIRs alleging trespass and assault. Chand contended that the FIR was filed with the ulterior motive of coercing him into reversing the disinheritance and conceding property rights.
Justice Sekhri accepted these arguments, observing that courts must be vigilant when civil disputes are disguised as criminal cases. The court noted that the allegations against the 85-year-old man, including assault and outraging modesty in broad daylight, were not only absurd and inherently improbable but also appeared to be driven by malice and a desire for vengeance. The court also pointed out that witnesses examined during the investigation did not corroborate the claims of theft or outraging modesty.
The High Court emphasized that criminal prosecution should not be used as an instrument of harassment or to settle personal vendettas. Quoting previous Supreme Court rulings, Justice Sekhri observed the importance of preventing the misuse of criminal law to give a criminal color to purely civil disputes. Finding the FIR to be motivated by "malice in fact and law," the court quashed the proceedings, asserting that the case was an "unfortunate family feud" that did not warrant criminal prosecution. The court allowed the petition filed by Nanak Chand and his sons and quashed FIR No. 0208/2022. The order was issued on September 1, 2025.
