Citing procedural violations, Karnataka HC quashes case against minister SS Mallikarjun under Wildlife Protection Act

The raid was conducted following a statement given by one Senthil, a staffer at the farmhouse, who was arrested that month on charges of selling deer skin, horn and bone in Bengaluru. He revealed to officials that he had obtained the skin from the farmhouse.

After investigation, an FIR was registered by the Assistant Conservator of Forests and minister Mallikarjun and his brother were added as accused along with several others. A report on the matter was filed before a magistrate, after which cognisance was taken under the Indian Penal Code, and another case was filed which included provisions of criminal conspiracy.

The bench observed procedural irregularities in the case noting that, “After the conduct of search and seizure if the wildlife offence is detected, then the Forest Officer has to record all the details in the Wildlife Offence Register in terms of prescribed format and prepare a Wildlife Offence Report… This is given a complete go-bye…thereafter, the complaint would be preferred before the jurisdictional magistrate under Section 200 of the CrPC. This procedure is violated for it to become topsy-turvy.” The bench also added that the magistrate could not have taken dual cognizance of the existing matters.

It added, “Therefore, finding no procedure or the procedure completely topsy-turvy in the cases at hand would mean that the entire proceedings need to be obliterated as glaring procedure aberrations noticed hereinabove cannot be countenanced and further proceedings cannot be permitted to continue by a fiat of this Court as they are all incurable illegalities cutting at the root of the matter and become an abuse of the process of the law.”