Why are civil disputes criminal? |Explained

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Story so far: India’s Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna recently declined a growing trend in the Uttar Pradesh government. His remarks came at a hearing in the face of an appeal filed in the check bouncing case, where they were also beaten on criminal charges, including breach of trust, intimidation and criminal conspiracy.

What is CJI’s remarks?

The Chief Justice pointed out: “Every day, civil lawsuits turn into criminal cases. This is ridiculous. Disputes about civil issues cannot become crimes… In Uttar Pradesh, the rule of law has completely collapsed. It is unacceptable to turn civil matters into criminal cases.” The Indian legal system has been witnessing more and more criminal laws are essentially civil issues. This trend has been seen in civil disputes such as recycling, inspection of bounce cases, contract disagreements, inheritance, property zoning, commercial transactions, etc. Many of these types of cases are increasingly given the color of a criminal dispute, often putting pressure on the other party.

What are the methods of committing crimes?

In most cases, a common strategy is to accuse the other party of dishonest intentions from the outset, such as a loan, contract or agreement. In terms of context, if Mr. A borrows money from Mr. B and Mr. B fails to repay it, it will traditionally be subject to civil jurisdiction. However, if Mr. A makes a claim that Mr. B never intends to repay the loan and obtain funds through deception, Mr. A can be charged under section 420 of the Indian Penal Code (cheating), which is covered under section 318 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Why does this happen?

Legal experts believe that many people regard civil law as an invalid remedy, largely due to the durable nature of most civil cases. This perception can also be seen in several family disputes, and prolonging litigation often leads to irreparable collapses in marriage or family relationships. There is also the impression that having someone involved in a criminal case can lead to faster resolution. In many cases, influential people and/or by inspiring police officers to register for FIR to create pressure on the other party.

According to the National Judicial Data Grid, there are currently 1,08,38,375 civil cases in courts across India. Before the trial court, more than 68% of all civil cases had more than one year of history.

In addition, of the 452 million cases in the District Court, 76% or 344 million are criminal cases.

What does the court say?

As early as January 2000, G. Sagar Suri and UP StatusThe Supreme Court warned: “It can be seen whether a criminal offence has been sentenced to a criminal offence if it is an incident of civil nature. Criminal proceedings are not a shortcut to other other remedies available in law. Please act with caution before issuing a criminal court that must act with caution. In order to be charged, this is a serious matter.”

The complexity of distinguishing the complexity of civil disputes (involving allegations of fraud) was conducted by Apex Court in May 2024 in C. Subbiah @ Kadambur Jayaraj and the Chief of Police. In this case, a government school teacher who was involved in real estate beforehand filed a complaint alleging fraud in a series of land transactions, accusing the other party of cheating him with lucrative real estate investments. The teacher claimed that he was convinced to register several properties in the other party’s name and ensured that he would obtain land and profits in return. After the argument, he had a dispute over profit sharing, complaining that the other party not only violated trust, but also scared him. The Supreme Court pointed out the fact that the other party had passed some plots and had some profits from the land transaction. It observed that there was no material that could indicate that the defendant was addicted to intimidation against the teacher.

“There is no doubt that disputes of purely civil nature have been sentenced to criminal prosecutions, alleging fraud and criminal breach of trust, and abuse of criminal law tools,” the Apex Court noted.

What is the way forward?

exist Indian Oil Company. With NEPC India Ltd. The Supreme Court case clearly states: “While no one should not prevent the seeking of remedies available in the criminal law, the complainant’s complainant was prosecuted or insisted on prosecution, fully aware that criminal proceedings are unnecessary and that his remedies are only criminal in civil law, but in such crimes, litigation should not be held responsible for the crime.”

The court also recommended a practical solution to discourage such abuse of criminal process: “One positive step that can be taken by the courts, to curb unnecessary prosecutions and harassment of innocent parties, is to exercise their power under Section 250 Cr.PC (compensation for accusations made without reasonable cause) more frequently, where they discern malice or frivolousness or ultimate motors on the part of the complainant.”