Criminal Law - Narcotics - Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985 - Sections 22(c) 29 37 42 and 43 - Search and seizure - Mandatory procedure - Private vehicle - Night search - Accused No 1 was intercepted in a Baleno car at 9:40 PM and found in possession of commercial quantities of narcotic drugs while Accused No 2 was arrested for conspiracy - Prosecution alleged the seizure took place on a public road - Petitioners contended that the detecting officer failed to record and forward grounds of belief as mandated under the proviso to Section 42(1) for searches conducted between sunset and sunrise in private vehicles - Court held that for searches in private vehicles even at public places based on prior information at night the provisions of Section 42 and not Section 43 apply - Total non-compliance with Section 42 mandates regarding recording grounds of belief vitiates the proceedings and can be considered at the bail stage to bypass the rigour of Section 37 - Held - Petitioners entitled to bail - [Paras 1-7].

Evidence Law - Procedural Compliance - Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985 - Section 42 - Search between sunset and sunrise - Private vehicle versus public conveyance - Search and seizure conducted in a private vehicle at a public place between sunset and sunrise requires strict compliance with the proviso to Section 42(1) which mandates recording grounds of belief - Failure to show such recording in the seizure mahazar constitutes total non-compliance - Such procedural infirmity is a valid ground for granting bail in cases involving commercial quantities - Held - Bail granted - [Paras 5-7].

Decision: Applications allowed – Petitioners directed to be released on bail upon executing a bond of Rs. 1,00,000/- each with two solvent sureties and fulfilling conditions including weekly appearance before the investigating officer and non-tampering of evidence.

Writ Law - Maintenance of Senior Citizens - Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act 2007 - Section 23 - Abatement of proceedings on death of senior citizen - Petitioner challenged the order of the Maintenance Tribunal which accepted the petition filed by the deceased senior citizen and set aside a family settlement and arbitration award - Petitioner appealed but the senior citizen expired during pendency of the appeal - Appellate Tribunal dismissed the appeal as infructuous due to the demise of the original applicant - Petitioner argued that the cause survived the death as it affected valuable proprietary rights and the award could only be challenged under the Arbitration Act - High Court held that proceedings under the Act are intended to secure the welfare of senior citizens during their lifetime and the right to seek benefit under the special statute abates on death - The protection accorded is co-terminus with the life of the senior citizen and the mere circumstance that proceedings incidentally involved the validity of a family settlement does not alter their essential character - Parties and legal heirs left to seek their civil remedies under law - Held - Appellate Tribunal committed no error in holding that the appeal had become infructuous - Writ petition dismissed - [Paras 1-10].

Writ Law - Scope of Interference - Constitution of India - Articles 226 and 227 - Judicial Review - Challenge to appellate order dismissing proceedings as infructuous - High Court exercising jurisdiction under Articles 226 and 227 does not sit as an appellate Court to re-appreciate factual findings in the absence of any manifest illegality or perversity - Petitioner failed to demonstrate any jurisdictional error or violation of principles of natural justice warranting interference by the Court - Held - Writ petition finding no merit is dismissed leaving it open to the parties to avail civil and proprietary remedies in law - [Paras 9-10].

Decision: Writ petition dismissed – Parties are at liberty to avail such remedies as may be available to them in law for adjudication of their respective civil and proprietary rights.

Criminal Law - Regular Bail - Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act 1985 - Sections 21-B, 21-C, 27-A, 29, 37, 61 and 85 - Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 - Section 483 - Petitioner sought regular bail in FIR involving recovery of 351 grams of heroin and drug money - Petitioner was nominated as an accused solely on the disclosure statement of co-accused Jora Singh - No recovery of contraband was effected from the petitioner - Petitioner in custody since January 2026 with trial yet to commence as none of the fifteen cited witnesses were examined - High Court observed that disclosure statements in the absence of corroborative evidence hold limited evidentiary value and cannot be the sole basis for implication - Court emphasized that reliance on unsubstantiated statements raises doubts regarding the fairness of investigation - Held - Further detention as an undertrial was not warranted - Regular bail granted subject to conditions - [Paras 1-10].

Criminal Law - Statutory Rigours - NDPS Act 1985 - Section 37 - Prolonged Incarceration - Constitution of India - Article 21 - Right to Liberty - The Court ratiocinated that while bail pleas for commercial quantities must generally meet the rigours of Section 37 of the NDPS Act such rigours pale into oblivion when bail is sought on account of long incarceration - Judicial discretion must strike a balance between personal liberty and effective administration of justice - Confessions made by a co-accused are inherently weak evidence and must be scrutinized with caution - Held - The rigour imposed under Section 37 of the NDPS Act stands diluted where the trial is procrastinating and the petitioner has suffered significant under-trial custody without any other material linking him to the offence - [Paras 6.1-6.4].

Decision: Petition allowed – Petitioner ordered to be released on regular bail upon furnishing bail/surety bonds to the satisfaction of the concerned CJM/Duty Magistrate subject to specific conditions including non-tampering of evidence and filing monthly affidavits of non-involvement in other offences.

Criminal Law - Appeal against acquittal - Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 - Section 378 - Gujarat Sales Tax Act 1969 - Sections 75 and 80 - Central Sales Tax Act 1956 - Section 9 - Respondents serving as Sales Tax Officers were accused of criminal misconduct by approving a refund claim at four percent without proper verification of C Forms submitted by a trader - Trial Court acquitted the accused observing that prosecution failed to prove any conspiracy and failed to examine the alleged beneficiary of the refund - Trial Court also noted that no actual refund order was issued or disbursed - State preferred present appeal against the acquittal - Respondent number one died during pendency and appeal abated against him - High Court observed that investigating officer failed to trace or examine the proprietor of the beneficiary firm and no documentary evidence established the preparation or issuance of the refund order in favour of the beneficiary - High Court further held that there was no infirmity or illegality in the findings of the Trial Court as the prosecution miserably failed to prove the charges beyond reasonable doubt - Held - Impugned judgment and order of acquittal passed by Trial Court is confirmed - Appeal dismissed - [Paras 3-29].

Criminal Law - Power of Appellate Court - Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 - Section 378 - Scope of interference in appeal against acquittal - Double presumption of innocence available to accused upon acquittal by Trial Court - High Court reiterated that if two reasonable conclusions are possible on the basis of the evidence on record the appellate court should not disturb the finding of acquittal unless the approach of the lower court is vitiated by manifest illegality or the conclusion is perverse - Held - Trial Court did not commit any error of fact or law in appreciating the evidence and acquitting the accused - No interference is warranted - [Paras 23-28].

Criminal Law - Abatement of appeal - Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 - Section 394 - Death of accused pending appeal - Respondent number one passed away during the pendency of the present appeal - Death certificate was placed on record - Held - Present appeal stands disposed of as having abated qua respondent number one - Appeal survived only against respondent number two - [Paras 1-2].

Decision: Appeal dismissed – Impugned judgment and order of acquittal passed by the trial Court is confirmed – Bail bond stands cancelled.

Criminal Law - Anticipatory Bail - Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 - Section 482 - Abetment of suicide - Applicant sought pre-arrest bail in a case registered for offences including abetment of suicide - Deceased committed suicide leaving a detailed suicide note and a dying declaration naming the applicant - Applicant allegedly inflicted severe mental and physical harassment over loan repayment and threatened to sell the kidney of the deceased and force his wife into prostitution - Applicant argued delay of four days in lodging FIR and asserted that mere demand for loan repayment does not amount to abetment - Prosecution opposed citing the suicide note and call records showing numerous phone calls to the deceased and his wife - High Court noted that the accusations are exceptionally grave and transcend routine financial disputes - The horrific threats strike at the core of human dignity and are prima facie capable of causing profound psychological distress driving the deceased into absolute despair - Custodial interrogation is imperative to unearth the truth given the specific accusations and proximate nexus between the conduct of the applicant and the extreme step taken by the deceased - Held - Anticipatory bail application lacks merit and stands dismissed - [Paras 1-14].

Criminal Law - Anticipatory Bail - Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 - Section 482 - Need for custodial interrogation - Court reiterated that the power to grant anticipatory bail is extraordinary and primarily designed to shield innocent individuals from groundless arrests - Accusation in the present case is anchored by a contemporaneous suicide note explicitly implicating the applicant in a pattern of unrelenting harassment - Extending the protective umbrella of pre-arrest bail would jeopardize the ongoing investigation and impede the law enforcement agency from unearthing vital evidence - Held - Even if custodial interrogation may not be required in every case it does not mean a grave prima facie case should be overlooked - The present factual matrix necessitates a comprehensive and unimpeded probe making it an unfit case to exercise discretionary jurisdiction - [Paras 8.1-13].

Decision: Application for anticipatory bail is dismissed – Rule is discharged – The trial Court is directed to decide the case on its own merits without being influenced by the tentative observations made in this order.

Writ Law - Constitutional Validity - Interpretation of Statutes - Karnataka Civil Courts (Amendment) Act 2023 - Section 4 - Retrospective operation - Amendment increased pecuniary jurisdiction of Civil Judges and transferred first appeals from High Court to District Courts with retrospective effect from 2007 - Petitioners argued that absence of saving clause would nullify 17 years of High Court judgments and take away vested rights - Single Judge had set aside retrospectivity as arbitrary - Division Bench analyzed legislative competence under Entry 11-A of Concurrent List and doctrine of purposive interpretation - Court noted that the amendment followed recommendations to reduce High Court pendency - Held - Legislature has competence to enact laws affecting jurisdiction - Forum of appeal is a matter of procedural law and not a vested substantive right - However - literal interpretation leading to nullification of thousands of concluded cases is manifestly absurd and unintended by the legislature - Section 4 of the Amendment Act is read down to exclude concluded matters and orders passed in pending proceedings from its retrospective operation - Retrospectivity confined only to the transfer of pending appeals to be governed by amended provisions from current stage - Single Judge order modified - [Paras 1-124].

Civil Law - Forum of Appeal - Procedural Law vs Substantive Right - Karnataka High Court Act 1961 - Sections 2 and 5 - Litigants contended that right to a specific forum for appeal is a vested right accruing on the date of suit institution - Reference made to Neena Aneja and SEBI v. Classic Credit Limited - Held - Right to appeal is substantive but the forum of appeal is procedural - Change in forum applies retrospectively to pending actions unless a contrary intention appears - Amendment by substitution implies the new rule replaces the old ab initio for pending matters - [Paras 49-60].

Writ Law - Equality Clause - Constitution of India - Article 14 - Reasonable Classification - Challenge to High Court Amendment Act for treating Bengaluru Urban District differently where first appeals continue to lie to High Court from City Civil Court - Held - There is a clear distinction between Senior Civil Judges in districts and Judges in Bengaluru City Civil Court who are in the cadre of District Judges - Classification based on cadre and nature of jurisdiction is reasonable and has a nexus with the object of administration of justice - No discrimination found - [Paras 116-117].

Interpretation of Statutes - Purposive Interpretation - Doctrine of Reading Down - Language of Section 4 provided for retrospective effect from 28.08.2007 without any savings clause - Held - Courts are not powerless to read in words or restrict operation to avoid manifest absurdity or injustice - Legislative intent was to harmonize with the 2007 amendment and tackle pendency - Statutory provisions must be interpreted to serve their rightful purpose and spirit over literal wording - Retrospective operation restricted to save previous operations and things duly done - [Paras 64-90].

Decision: Writ Appeal (W.A No.200260/2025) disposed of – Writ Petition (W.P No.17588/2024) dismissed – Order of the Single Judge modified to the extent that Section 4 of the Civil Courts Amendment Act is read down rather than set aside – Concluded matters and prior orders in pending proceedings are saved – Pending first appeals to be transferred to jurisdictional courts as per the amendments.

Family Law - Divorce - Hindu Marriage Act 1955 - Sections 13(1) and 23(1)(a) - Cruelty and Desertion - Appellant-wife filed for divorce alleging physical violence dowry demand and false aspersions on character - Trial Court dismissed the petition finding allegations unproved and omnibus in nature - In a separate criminal trial initiated by appellant against third parties for offences including rape she was found to be a consenting party to physical relations with another man post-marriage - Trial Court invoked Section 23(1)(a) holding she cannot take advantage of her own wrong - High Court affirmed the findings noting appellant voluntarily left matrimonial home and was involved in an adulterous act - Held - Trial Court committed no error in rejecting the divorce petition - appeal dismissed - [Paras 3-12].

Family Law - Desertion - Hindu Marriage Act 1955 - Section 13(1) - Appellant claimed she was forced to leave matrimonial house - Cross-examination revealed she left with her brother who was not examined as a witness - Affidavit of appellant suggested she left on her own volition without compulsion or torture - Held - issue of desertion not proved against respondent - [Paras 11-12].

Decision: Appeal dismissed - Trial Court judgment and decree affirmed - Record of the trial court to be remitted back along with a copy of the judgment.

Criminal Law - Dishonour of Cheque - Negotiable Instruments Act 1881 - Section 138 - Forum for Appeal - Appellant filed appeal under Section 378(4) CrPC challenging judgment dated 26.08.2025 in C.C.No.19 of 2022 on the file of Judicial Magistrate of First Class Gannavaram acquitting accused under Section 255(1) CrPC - Appellant requested return of grounds to file before Sessions Court as per proviso to Section 372 CrPC citing Supreme Court precedent - Court observed that if the complainant is also a victim they can prefer appeal under the proviso to section 372 CrPC even in cases of dishonoured cheques - Held - Registry directed to return the original bundle to the appellant to represent the appeal within four weeks before the concerned Sessions Court - [Paras 1-7].

Criminal Law - Victim Right to Appeal - Code of Criminal Procedure 1973 - Section 372 - Applicability to NI Act - Complainant in a proceeding under Section 138 NI Act who is also a victim is entitled to prefer an appeal against acquittal before the Sessions Court under the proviso to Section 372 CrPC which is equivalent to Section 413 BNSS 2023 - Held - Complainant can prefer appeal before Sessions Court instead of High Court under Section 378(4) CrPC - [Paras 4-5].

Decision: Appeal returned – Registry directed to return the original bundle to the appellant to represent the appeal before the concerned Sessions Court within four (4) weeks from the date of receipt of the order.

Banking Law - Jurisdiction of Civil Court - Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act 2002 - Section 34 - Bar on granting injunction - Appellant-plaintiff filed a suit for partition and declaration of 1/2 share in property and to declare a mortgage created by the 1st respondent-mother in favor of the 3rd respondent-bank as null and void - Appellant contended that the property was purchased by her father in the name of her mother as a benamidar and later a release deed was executed in 1993 without consideration to save the property from creditors - Bank initiated SARFAESI proceedings following loan default and an Advocate Commissioner was appointed to take physical possession - Appellant sought interim injunction to restrain the bank from taking possession - Trial Court rejected the injunction holding that Section 34 of the SARFAESI Act barred the jurisdiction of the Civil Court - High Court analyzed Section 34 and observed it contains two distinct limbs - the first limb bars the entertainment of a suit regarding matters a Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) is empowered to decide - the second limb prohibits any court from granting an injunction in respect of any action taken in pursuance of any power conferred by the Act - Held - Even if a suit for partition is maintainable before a Civil Court because the DRT cannot decide such a plea - the second limb of Section 34 acts as a fall-back safety net and an independent bar - Civil Courts are strictly prohibited from granting injunctions against measures initiated by secured creditors under the Act - The bar on injunctions applies even in suits that are not hit by the first limb of the section - Impugned order upheld - Appeal dismissed - [Paras 1-34].

Civil Law - Interpretation of Statutes - Disjunctive Interpretation of Conjunctions - Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act 2002 - Section 34 - Interpretation of the word and - Court examined whether the two limbs of Section 34 are conjunctive or disjunctive - Held - To carry out the legislative intent and prevent the section from becoming redundant the word and must be read disjunctively - The legislature intended to shield SARFAESI proceedings from being interdicted by any order of injunction issued by courts or other authorities - The two limbs of Section 34 must be read distinctively to ensure immunity for recovery proceedings from Civil Court interference - [Paras 19-33].

Decision: Appeal dismissed – No order as to costs.