Kirpal Singh v. Harpreet Singh
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5.
Per contra, learned counsel for the respondent submits that there is no provision in the Cr.P.C that allows for the application for amendment of complaint. Further, the amendment sought pertains to a serious infirmity that goes to the root of the matter and as such, cannot be
allowed. Additionally, the petitioner had on an earlier occasion moved a similar application seeking amendment which was allowed by the learned trial Court. Resorting to it again is just an attempt by the petitioner to fill up the lacunae and delay the proceedings of the court intentionally in order to harass the respondent.
6.
Having heard learned counsel for the parties and perusing the record of the case, it transpires that originally para 4 of the complaint (supra) read as follows:
"That accused in the month of March, 2019 requested to the complainant to advance Rs. 10,00,000/- as friendly loan as the accused needed the money to send his son abroad i.e. Canada" Pertinently, the same allegation was levelled by the petitioner in the legal notice dated 27.01.2020 sent by him to the respondent. 7.
Allowing the proposed amendment to paragraph 4 of the complaint would fundamentally alter the factual matrix of the case and cannot, by any stretch, be categorized as a mere typographical correction. The original wording explicitly states that the loan was sought for the purpose of "sending the respondent's son abroad," whereas the amendment seeks to replace it with the word "go," which significantly changes the context of the alleged transaction. Such an alteration is not a minor or technical modification but strikes at the very root of the case, as it directly affects the nature of the representation made by the respondent at the time of seeking the loan.
8.
Permitting such a change would also create the potential for serious prejudice to the respondent. For instance, if it were to later emerge
that the son of the respondent was already abroad at the relevant time, the original assertion, that the loan was required for sending him abroad, would stand contradicted, which could have been a material aspect weighing against the case of the petitioner. However, by altering the language the petitioner seeks to cure a potential infirmity in the narrative of the prosecution, thereby attempting to fill a lacuna. This is impermissible in law, as amendments to pleadings cannot be allowed when they fundamentally reshape the case in a manner that alters its core foundation or prejudices the defense. Fairness and procedural propriety demand that the case of the petitioner stand or fall on its original assertions and evidence, without the benefit of retrospective tailoring.
= A two Judge bench of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in S.R. Sukumar v. S. Sunaad Raghuram (2015) 9 SCC 609, speaking through Justice R. Banumathi, the following was held: "17. Insofar as merits of the contention regarding allowing of amendment application, it is true that there is no specific provision in the Code to amend either a complaint or a petition filed under the provisions of the Code, but the Courts have held that the petitions seeking such amendment to correct curable infirmities can be allowed even in respect of complaints. In U.P. Pollution Control Board v. Modi Distillery and Ors., (1987) 3 SCC 684, wherein the name of the company was wrongly mentioned in the complaint that is, instead of Modi Industries Ltd. the name of the company was mentioned as Modi Distillery and the name was sought to be amended.
In such factual background, this Court has held as follows:- "...
controlling company of the industrial unit figure as the concerned accused in the complaint. All that has to be done is the making of a formal application for amendment by the appellant for leave to amend by substituting the name of Modi Industries Limited, the company owning the industrial unit, in place of Modi Distillery.... Furthermore, the legal infirmity is of such a nature which could be easily cured..."
18. What is discernible from the U.P. Pollution Control Board's case is that easily curable legal infirmity could be cured by means of a formal application for amendment. If the amendment sought to be made relates to a simple infirmity which is curable by means of a formal amendment and by allowing such amendment, no prejudice could be caused to the other side, notwithstanding the fact that there is no enabling provision in the Code for entertaining such amendment, the Court may permit such an amendment to be made. On the contrary, if the amendment sought to be made in the complaint does not relate either to a curable infirmity or the same cannot be corrected by a formal amendment or if there is likelihood of prejudice to the other side, then the Court shall not allow such amendment in the complaint."
% In the same vein, the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Munish Kumar Gupta vs. M/s Mittal Trading Company, 2024 SCC OnLine SC 1732 dealing with an amendment application with regard to an inadvertent typographical error in mentioning the year of the cheque, held that the complainant consistently recorded the cheque date as 22.07.2010 right from the stage of issuing the notice demanding payment, in the complaint, and in the evidence presented as well. All supporting documents also reflected this date. B 776116 #,
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In view of the discussion above, the present petition is dismissed and order dated 26.11.2024 (Annexure P-5) passed by learned Judicial Magistrate Ist Class, Gurdaspur, is upheld. 12.
Pending miscellaneous application(s), if any, shall also stand disposed of.
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