Dishonor Of Cheque And Requirements For The Offence

The Hon'ble Meghalaya High Court at Shillong vide its order dated May 13, 2022 in the matter of HDFC Bank Ltd. Mawlai Nonglum Branch & Anr v. Sri Baklai Siej & Anr.¹ has reiterated that for an offence of dishonor of cheque under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 to be made out, the dishonoured cheque must have been issued by the account holder under his name and signature.

Brief facts of the case

• The Respondent had filed a complaint under Section 138 read with Section 142 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 before the Court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Shillong, with a prayer to initiate action against the accused persons therein under the said provisions of the Negotiable Instruments Act for an alleged case of cheque bouncing, with regard to a cheque for ₹ 1, 00,000/- drawn on HDFC Bank, Mawlai Nonglum Branch. The Respondent had then visited the HDFC Bank, Police Bazar Branch, Shillong to find that the said amount had reverted to the