Bengaluru’s High Court on Thursday set aside an FIR against Odisha businessman Sailen Das, saying a commercial disagreement over iron ore deliveries cannot be stretched into a criminal case. The ruling brings relief to the 37-year-old director of Jambu Odisha Trade Pvt. Ltd., who had faced allegations of cheating and criminal intimidation.
Background
The complaint came from A One Steels India Pvt. Ltd., which alleged that after paying large sums for 20,000 metric tonnes of iron ore fines, the promised material never arrived on schedule. Company officials said they were left chasing deliveries despite repeated assurances. Payments ran into crores, and a blank cheque was even taken as security. The dispute began in December 2023 when contracts were signed in Bengaluru.
Court’s Observations
Justice Sachin Shankar Magadum noted that while payments and partial deliveries were admitted, the essence of the disagreement lay in contract performance.
“The recitals in the complaint itself disclose that a substantial portion of the contractual obligations was performed,” the judge observed, adding that no evidence showed dishonest intent “at the inception of the transaction.”
The bench referred to recent Supreme Court precedents clarifying that civil disputes should not be dressed up as criminal cases merely to exert pressure.
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Decision
Allowing Das’s writ petition, the court quashed the FIR registered at Kodigehalli Police Station under Sections 420 (cheating) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC. “Permitting the prosecution to proceed in these circumstances would amount to an abuse of the process of law,” the order read. However, the judge made it clear that A One Steels remains free to pursue civil remedies to enforce its contractual rights.
Case Title: Sailen Das v. State of Karnataka & A One Steels India Pvt. Ltd.
Case Number: Writ Petition No. 26873 of 2024 (GM-RES)
Date of Order: 11 September 2025
