HC refuses to quash complaint against bank for violating Act

The Bombay High Court has refused to quash or set aside an order of a city Magistrate who had issued process (summons) against top officers of Bank of Baroda for violating Maharashtra Private Security Guards Act.
In keeping with the rules, the employer has to employ security guards provided by the scheme constituted under the Act.
As this was not done by Bank of Baroda which employed security guards other than those provided under the scheme, a government inspector lodged a court complaint based on which the magistrate issued process against bank officials in 2010.
Being aggrieved, the Bank officials moved the High Court seeking to quash the process issued by the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate at Ballard Pier in South Mumbai.

Justice S C Dharmadhikari held, "To my mind, the Act being a welfare piece of legislation meant to make the service conditions of the security guards and protect them from exploitation, a complaint filed by the inspector alleging violation of the provisions of the Act and the scheme framed there under cannot be quashed."
"The order issuing process on such complaint cannot be set aside unless this court is satisfied that the complaint read as whole does not disclose any offence punishable under the said Act and the Scheme," the judge said on April 16.
"In the present case, such conclusion cannot be reached as the complaint alleges specific violation of the Scheme and consequently the Act. Once the complaint cannot be termed as an abuse of process of the Court, then, the proceedings in furtherance thereof cannot be quashed," the court ruled.

The Judge, however, made it clear that it would be open for the petitioners to raise all contentions and it is not as if the order issuing a process being upheld, these contentions cannot be raised. Clarifying that they can be raised at an appropriate stage, the writ petitions are dismissed, the judge noted.