M/s JM Laboratories and Others vs State of Andhra Pradesh and Another

Court

Supreme Court of India

Date

30 January 2025

Case No.

Criminal Appeal No. 487 of 2025

Result

Allowed

Bench

Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai, Augustine George Masih

Citation

[2025] 1 S.C.R. 1256 : 2025 INSC 127

Acts & Sections

CrPC Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940

Issue for consideration

Non-speaking summoning order issued by Magistrate against the appellants. Petition under Section 482, CrPC filed by the appellants for quashing, dismissed by High Court. Issue as regards the legality of the summoning order and the impugned judgment.

Headnote

Summoning order – Non-speaking – Quashing of: Held: Summoning of an accused in a criminal case is a serious matter – The order of the Magistrate summoning the accused must reflect that he has applied his mind to the facts of the case and the law applicable thereto – However, in the present case, the summoning order was totally a non-speaking one – Magistrate issued the process without assigning any reasons even for the namesake – Impugned judgment passed by the High Court is quashed and set aside – Summoning order and the proceedings arising therefrom also quashed and set aside. [Paras 6, 8, 9, 10]

Judgment B.R. Gavai, J. 1. Leave granted. 2. The present appeal challenges the judgment and final order dated 4th October, 2023 passed by a learned Single Judge of the High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Amravati in Criminal Petition No. 5766 of 2023, whereby the petition filed by the appellants herein under Section 482 of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter, “CrPC”) to quash the proceedings in C.C. No. 1051 of 2023 on the file of learned Judicial Magistrate of First Class, Kurnool (hereinafter, “trial court”) came to be dismissed. 3. The facts, in brief, giving rise to the present a

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