Delhi High Court directs clubbing of FIRs against Orris Infrastructure in Greenopolis Project case
Justice Dharmesh Sharma [01-07-2024]

Read Order: Orris Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd v. State Of Nct Of Delhi &Ors [DEL HC W.P.(CRL) 1914/2024, CRL.M.A. 18591/2024]

LE Correspondent

New Delhi, July 1, 2024: The Delhi High Court has directed the clubbing of a fresh FIR (First Information Report) with an ongoing investigation against Orris Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd and its promoters and directors in connection with the Greenopolis housing project in Gurugram, Haryana.

The order was passed by Justice Dharmesh Sharma while hearing a petition filed by Orris Infrastructure seeking quashing of FIR No. 06/2024 registered by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The petitioner argued that the present FIR was the third one on identical facts after a series of supplementary police reports and charge sheets, which were based on the same allegations levelled by a new set of 168 complainants/investors. The court observed that there cannot be multiple FIRs with regard to the same offenses or series of offenses, and fresh complaints entertained by the investigating agency have to be clubbed and inquired into during the course of further investigation, if any, in respect of the earlier FIR No. 137/2017.

The court relied on several Supreme Court judgments, including TT Antony v. State of Kerala, which held that subjecting a citizen to fresh investigation by the police in respect of the same incident, giving rise to one or more cognizable offenses, consequent upon filing of successive FIRs, would be beyond the purview of Sections 154 and 156 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and a case of abuse of the statutory power of investigation. The court directed that the fresh FIR No. 06/2024 be clubbed with the ongoing investigation in FIR No. 137/2017 and that no coercive process shall be initiated against Orris Infrastructure and its directors, who are already arraigned as accused persons in the pending criminal proceedings emanating from the earlier FIR. The matter has been listed for further hearing on August 12, 2024.