Before condone delay in complaint U/S 138 N.I. Act – Accused should be heard-Tripura HC
D.D:- 30 May 2022
Recently, the Tripura High Court clarified that before forgiving a delay in filing a complaint under section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, a court must issue notice to the accused and hear him (NI Act).
The court made this observation while considering an appeal challenging a 2020 judgement issued by the CJM, Agartala in a case filed under the NI Act.
The trial court had dismissed the complaint due to a 10-day filing delay, and as the delay was not excusable, the defendant was acquitted.
In its appeal, the High Court stated that if a complaint is filed after the statutory deadline, the complainant must have a valid reason for not filing the complaint within the stipulated time frame.
Referring to the case at hand, the court noted that the complaint was filed ten days after the thirty-day statutory deadline.
According to the court, the lower court’s error in accepting jurisdiction and proceeding with the trial prevented both the defendant and the complainant from receiving equitable justice.
Therefore, the court vacated the order of acquittal and remanded the case to the CJM court in Agartala for further proceedings.
Sumit Deb
vs
Joy Deb & Anr
