The apex court further said that in criminal cases, courts cannot quash the charge sheet on the mere plea of the accused that there is no truth in the allegations.

“It has to be borne in mind that while considering the application for quashing of the charge sheet, the allegations made in the FIR and the materials collected during the course of the investigation are required to be considered. “Truthfulness or otherwise of the allegation is not fit to be gone into at this stage as it is always a matter of trial. Essential ceremonies of the marriage were gone into or not is a matter of trial,” a bench of Justices D K Jain and C K Prasad said in a judgment.

The apex court gave the verdict while upholding the appeal of a woman K Neelavani, challenging the Madras High Court order quashing the chargesheet filed against her husband S K Siva Kumar under IPC Sections 406 (breach of trust) and 494 (bigamy-second marriage).

According to Neelavani, despite subsistence of their marriage, Kumar had married another woman Bharathi and fathered her child.

Allowing the wife’s appeal, the apex court observed: “In our opinion, in the facts and circumstances of the case, quashing of the charge sheet under Sections 406 and 494 of IPC at this stage in exercise of the power under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure was absolutely uncalled for.”