Accused residing beyond jurisdiction – Inquiry shall be conducted on receipt of complaints u/s 138 of the Act to arrive at sufficient grounds to proceed against the accused, when such accused resides beyond the territorial jurisdiction of the court.

(SC) Decided on: 16.04.2021

Accused residing beyond jurisdiction – Held, section 202 (2) of the Code is inapplicable to complaints u/s 138 in respect of examination of witnesses on oath – For the conduct of inquiry u/s Section 202 of the Code, evidence of witnesses on behalf of the complainant shall be permitted to be taken on affidavit -- In suitable cases, the Magistrate can restrict the inquiry to examination of documents without insisting for examination of witnesses.

(SC) Decided on: 16.04.2021