S.138 NI Act | Supreme Court Sets Aside HC Decision Allowing Amendment Of Cheque Date Mentioned In Complaint

The Supreme Court recently set aside a judgment of the High Court which allowed a complainant in a cheque dishonour case to amend the date of the cheque mentioned in the complaint.

The Supreme Court noted that the amendment application was moved after the evidence stage was over. Here, the date of the cheque was mentioned as 22.07.2010 in the complaint. The same date was mentioned in the legal notice which was issued after the dishonour of the cheque. Also, in the evidence as well, the very same date was mentioned.

However, the complainant, after the evidence stage, filed the amendment application to change the date of the cheque mentioned in the complaint as 22.07.2012 instead of 22.07.2010. The application also sought to change the date of the cheque mentioned in the evidence. Though the trial court rejected the application, the High Court allowed it, saying that typographical mistakes were possible.

Disapproving the High Court's approach, the Supreme Court stated that the legal notice issued before the complaint also mentioned the date 22.07.2010.

"The High Court has, in fact, lost sight of the fact that the documents also contain the said date and the evidence recorded is also to the same effect," the Court said.

"In a matter of the present nature, where the date is a relevant aspect based on which the entire aspect relating to the issue of notice within the time frame as provided under the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, and also as to whether as on the date there was sufficient balance in the account of the issuer of the cheque would be the question, the amendment, as sought for, in the present circumstance, was not justified, " the bench comprising Justices AS Bopanna and Sanjay Kumar noted.

Case : Munish Kumar Gupta v. M/s Mittal Trading Company

Citation : 2024 LiveLaw (SC) 339

Click here to read the order