REPORTABLE

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 601  OF 2009

C.B.I.            ….Appellant(s)

VERSUS

Pratap Chandra Reddy     ….Respondent(s)

                 J U D G M E N T

Abhay Manohar Sapre, J.  

1. This appeal is filed against the final judgment

and order dated 04.10.2006  passed by the  High

Court  of  Delhi  at  New Delhi in Criminal  Revision

Petition  No.115 of 1999  whereby the  High  Court

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allowed the revision petition filed by the respondent

herein.

2. By order dated 26.03.2007,  this Court issued

notice limited to the question on the correctness of

the  High Court's  order  so far  as it relates to the

applicability of Foreign Contribution (Regulation)

Act 1976 (hereinafter referred to as the “FCRA”).

3. We heard the learned counsel for the parties

and also perused the written submissions filed by

the respondent.

4. It is not in dispute that the  matter is  sub

judice  and pending in the Court of Chief

Metropolitan Magistrate, Delhi in a case titled  CBI

vs.  Nemi  Chand  Jain  and  others  in relation to

certain offences alleged to have been committed by

the respondent,  which are punishable under the

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Indian Penal Code, 1860 (hereinafter referred to as

“IPC”) and FCRA.

5. In our view, the issue with regard to the

applicability  of the  provisions of the FCRA to the

case  at  hand can  be  decided  more  properly  only

after the evidence is  adduced  by the  prosecution

and the material, if  any, is  brought on record by

means of evidence against the appellant in the case.

6. At the initial stage of the proceedings in this

case, it does not appear appropriate or possible to

probe this issue and decide it on merits one way or

the other for want of adequate material. It is for this

reason, we decline to examine the issue at this stage

in these proceedings and leave the parties to raise

this plea only after the prosecution adduces the

evidence on merits. The Trial Court will then record

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its finding at that stage in accordance  with law

while disposing of the case.

7. Since the trial is pending for quite a long time,

we direct the concerned Magistrate to proceed with

the matter and dispose of the same in accordance

with law within a period of one year from the date of

this  order without being influenced by any of the

observations of the High Court made in the

impugned order and in this order.   In fact, we

refrain ourselves from recording any finding on

various submissions urged by the learned counsel

for the respondent in his written submissions in the

light of what we have observed supra.

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8. With these observations, the appeal stands

disposed of.   

                                            .………...................................J.                                    [ABHAY MANOHAR SAPRE]                                       

    …...……..................................J.                    [INDU MALHOTRA]

New Delhi; December 11, 2018

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