What Happened ?
In the case of Shailesh Kumar Singh alias Shailesh R. Singh v. State of Uttar Pradesh & Ors. [Criminal Appeal No. 2963/2025], someone tried to recover ₹25 lakh by filing a police complaint (FIR) for cheating. The Allahabad High Court directed the parties to go for mediation and asked the accused to hand over a demand draft of ₹25 lakh. The matter was then taken to the Supreme Court
⚖️ What Did the Supreme Court Decide?
The bench of Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice R. Mahadevan made a strong and clear ruling:
“Money cannot be recovered, more particularly, in a civil dispute between the parties by filing a First Information Report and seeking the help of the Police. This amounts to abuse of process of law.”
Key Points from the Judgment:
- Civil disputes must be handled in civil courts, not through criminal complaints.
- Cheating under criminal law requires intent to deceive from the beginning—just failing to pay or fulfill a contract isn’t enough.
- The Court criticized the High Court for not recognizing the civil nature of the dispute and for directing mediation without any civil suit being filed.
🧠 Why Is This Important?
Many people think that filing a police complaint will make the other person pay up quickly. But the Supreme Court said this is misusing the law. Criminal law is meant for serious crimes, not for business or money disputes.
🏛️ What Should You Do Instead?
If someone owes you money:
- Try to resolve it peacefully.
- If that doesn’t work, file a case in civil court.
- Don’t go to the police unless there’s clear evidence of fraud or cheating from the start.
✅ Final Takeaway
In Shailesh Kumar Singh v. State of Uttar Pradesh, the Supreme Court ruled that civil disputes over money cannot be resolved by filing FIRs or involving the police. You must use civil courts to recover money.
This ruling protects people from being wrongly dragged into criminal cases and keeps the police focused on real crimes.
