Mumbai, May 14 (PTI) The Bombay High Court has quashed an FIR registered against a retired Mumbai police officer for allegedly insulting the modesty of an airline cabin crew member last year over a dispute concerning a parking spot.
A bench of Justices Sarang Kotwal and S M Modak on May 8 quashed the case, noting that the dispute was personal and the complainant no longer wished to pursue the matter.
The case was registered against former Deputy Commissioner of Police Madhukar Sankhe following a dispute over a hoarding kept in the complainant’s parking spot in their housing society.
“The dispute between the parties is purely personal in nature. Both of them are residing in the same society, and they are residing together peacefully as of today. No purpose will be served if the prosecution is continued,” the HC said.
The FIR was registered on August 24, 2024, at the Matunga Police Station under section 79 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which deals with words or gestures intended to insult the modesty of a woman.
Sankhe, who retired from the Worli headquarters in 2016, was the secretary of the housing society where the complainant lived.
As per the complaint, when the building was undergoing repainting, a signboard from a nearby State Bank of India branch had been temporarily placed near the complainant’s parking space, obstructing her car’s movement.
When the complainant approached Sankhe on the issue, a quarrel ensued during which it was alleged that Sankhe shouted at her and used inappropriate language.
Sankhe later moved HC seeking to quash the case.
In HC, the complainant woman submitted an affidavit stating there was no longer any animosity between them and she had no objection to the case being quashed.