Delhi court sets aside magistrate's order dismissing 'cheating' complaint against ex-Union minister

New Delhi, Nov 12 (PTI) A Delhi court has set aside a magistrate's order which dismissed a complaint seeking prosecution of former Union minister Bhanwar Jitendra Singh, saying there were prima facie grounds to proceed against him for the offence of criminal breach of trust.

The court was hearing an appeal against a magisterial court order of March this year which dismissed against Singh a complaint alleging offences of cheating and criminal breach of trust.

According to complainant Rohit Singh Mahiyaria, Singh had borrowed an M F Hussain painting worth over Rs 1 crore in April 2014 from his mother but failed to return it. In 2017, the former minister claimed that he was unable to locate the painting.

In an order dated November 11, the court said, "The record clearly demonstrates that the painting in question was entrusted to the respondent 2 (Singh) in April 2014 only for a limited purpose, namely, to show it to his wife and to consider its purchase. The entrustment was made in good faith and without any transfer of ownership." It said that Singh's subsequent conduct in failing to return the painting despite repeated oral and written requests, offering false assurances, and ultimately refusing to return the same, unmistakably reflected dishonest retention and misappropriation of entrusted property, thereby fulfilling the ingredients of criminal breach of trust under Section 406 of the IPC.

The court, however, said that the offence of cheating was not prima facie made out in the case.

It said that the magistrate had erroneously relied upon a solitary SMS sent by the complainant's mother to Singh to infer that the painting had been gifted.

The court said when the entire sequence of communications is read conjointly, the inference drawn by the trial (magisterial) court that the painting was gifted is manifestly unsustainable.

It said that the tenor and language of the messages unmistakably showed that the complainant's mother had been repeatedly requesting Singh to return the painting while expressing distress over his continued non-response.

"Thus, the material available on record prima facie discloses sufficient grounds to proceed against respondent 2 (Singh) for the offence punishable under Section 406 of the IPC," the court said, setting aside the magistrate's order and directing it to "proceed further in accordance with law and to pass appropriate orders".

The court directed the complainant and Singh to appear before the magistrate on November 25. PTI MNR MNR KSS KSS