Supreme Court Quashes False FIR Against Appellant in Family Dispute Case

On 21 April 2023 , In a recent judgment, the Supreme Court of India quashed the FIR against Ritu Tomar in the case of Ritu Tomar v. State of U.P. and Others (Criminal Appeal No. 1210 of 2023). The Court observed that the report submitted by the jurisdictional police clearly stated that the incident projected by the complainant appeared to be false and that none of the villagers, including the neighbors of the complainant, had testified about the occurrence of any incident as claimed by him.

The case emerged from a family dispute between the appellant's sister, Rekha, and her husband, the complainant. Rekha had previously filed a petition for maintenance against her husband and also lodged an FIR against him for harassment and dowry demand. In response, the complainant filed an application under Section 156(3) of CrPC, alleging that the appellant and others had forcibly entered his house and assaulted him with a knife. However, the jurisdictional police investigated the matter and submitted a report stating that the incident had not occurred, and the complainant had filed the application on concocted and baseless facts.

Despite the police report, the trial court ordered the registration of the FIR against the appellant and others. The appellant then filed a petition under Section 482 of CrPC for quashing the FIR, which was dismissed by the High Court. The Supreme Court allowed the appeal and quashed the proceedings against the appellant.

Ritu Tomar v. State of U.P