My friend's car met with an accident with a bike in May this year.
Brief of the case :
1) The complainant belongs to an infiuential family.He was on the wrong side of the road,while my friend was stopping to make a turn, still in 1st gear with his car (it being a very busy junction).The complainant was riding a 1000cc sports bike.He sustained no injuries (not even a scratch),and there was no damage to anyone else or the property around the junction.It was the complainant's fault that he came riding an imported bike from the wrong side that led to the alleged accident.
2) The complainant didnt have valid insurance cover on him when this happened (his insurance had expired) when the alleged accident happened.My friend on the other hand had a valid third party insurance cover.
3) The complainant went ahead and filed an FIR against my friend with the police.The police, (surely in cohort with this complainant) has filed sections 279 and 427 of the CrPC against my friend. The complainant has made a claim of Rs.1,50,000/- as compensation for the few parts of his bike that were damaged due to his fall (mirrors came out and a part of the clutch made by fibre glass were broken). That apart, there was no bodily damage,and my friend's car was in perfect condition without as much as a scratch.
The case is classified under "Sum Case" (not sure if this means summons or summary- can someone please explain?). Also, the trial court has called for the prosecution to produce witnesses (the case is in that stage now).There is no question of a witness in this case simply because there is no evidence to prove that my friend was driving rashly or negligently (going with Sec 279 of CrPC) and neither does he know the complainant (to cause damage to his bike with an "intention" to cause harm to him - going with Sec 427 of CrPC). The Public Prosecutor says he cannot send summons to produce his witnesses since he has a huge backlog of cases pending (of varying degrees of criminal nature) and that if need be, to expedite this silly case, he can do so if he's paid something by the accused. My friend comes from a middle class background and works in a private sector. He works a 9-5 job and has a familly to support. He rightly says that there is no "criminal case" as such in this scenario. He also requires to travel abroad as part of his official duties and is worried that the slow pace of this case will impact his career growth (problems in visa application). His lawyer says procedures can take as long as 4-5 years depending on the seriousness of the case (and this being a silly case, people will just sit on it).
1) Can someone tell me how this can be expedited? there is no evidence that the police has collected (there being none) and my friend is totally innocent and is just being taken for a ride, making rounds of the criminal court every other week, apart from the mental agony caused to him and his family.
2) Is there a time frame during which the prosecution has to send summons and produce witnesses (like how the police are required to file a chargesheet within 90 days of the filing of the FIR)? Was there a necessity for the police to slap sections 279 and 427 of the CrPC in this case, despite them knowing that there was nothing wrong that my friend did? Was there a necessity for them to file an FIR at all?
3) When the prosecution delays unnecessarily, can the accused raise an objection (if the accused is ready to be tried and has a strong defence and wants to expedite the case)?
4) Can such a case be quashed? If so, what is the procedure to do so? Does my friend need to file a petition separately? Can it be done in the trial court itself or does he need to approach the High Court?
This is a clear case where my friend has to undergo unnecessary harrassment for absolutely no fault of his. The police, along with the complainant are just taking advantage of their law and innocent people like my friend are victimized.Can someone suggest how to help my friend expedite this case?
