Graft, rape cases can’t be quashed after pvt deals: SC Dhananjay Mahapatra TNN  New Delhi: In a landmark judgment, the Supreme Court on Monday put corruption at par with heinous offences and ruled that FIRs registered under various sections of Prevention of Corruption Act cannot be quashed by high courts even if the victim and offender reach a settlement. The accused will have to face trial after completion of investigation, the court said.      In some recent cases, persons accused of rape charges had offered to marry the victim to escape punishment which ranged from 7-10 years of imprisonment. This too can no longer be a valid settlement for the rape accused to seek quashing of criminal proceedings, the court ruled.      A bench of Justices R M Lodha, A R Dave and S J Mukhopadhaya said, “Heinous and serious offences of mental depravity or offences like murder, rape, dacoity etc cannot be fittingly quashed even though the victim or victim’s family and the offender have settled the dispute. Such offences are not private in nature and have serious impact on society.      “Similarly, any compromise between the victim and offender in relation to the offences under special statutes like Prevention of Corruption Act or the offences committed by public servants while working in that capacity etc; cannot provide for any basis for quashing criminal proceedings involving such offences.”      Writing the judgment for the bench, Justice Lodha said, “Criminal cases having overwhelmingly and pre-dominatingly civil flavour stand on different footing for the purposes of quashing, particularly the offences arising from commercial, financial, mercantile, civil, partnership or such like transactions or the offences arising out of matrimony relating to dowry etc or family disputes, where the wrong is basically private or personal in nature and the parties have resolved their entire dispute.      The SC said the HCs’ power to quash a criminal proceeding or an FIR or complaint in exercise of its inherent jurisdiction was distinct and different from the power given to a criminal court for compounding of the offences under Section 320 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The SC said that heinous offences like murder, rape and dacoity, and those under special statutes like the anti-corruption Act, are not private in nature.     Source::: The Times of India, 25-09-2012, p.09. http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Client.asp?Daily=TOIM&showST=true&login=default&pub=TOI&Enter=true&Skin=TOINEW