Overview
- Justice C. Pratheep Kumar set aside proceedings pending before the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ernakulam, on October 27.
- The court held the magistrate took cognisance more than 15 years after the alleged incident despite Sections 354 and 509 carrying a two-year maximum at the time and a three-year limit under Section 468.
- The bench had sought a report on any order condoning delay under Section 473 CrPC and recorded that the magistrate declined to furnish one before evidence appraisal.
- The FIR was lodged in August 2024 over an alleged 2009 apartment meeting, and a Special Investigation Team filed a chargesheet in November 2024.
- The decision cited Johnson Alexander v. State by CBI, and an earlier anticipatory-bail plea was closed after the court noted the offence was bailable in 2009.