"Typo" No Excuse: SC Quashes Complaint After Demand Notice Claims Double The Bounced Cheque

Introduction

Kaveri Plastics v. Mahdoom Bawa Bahrudeen Noorul¹, the Supreme Court of India held that a statutory demand notice demanding an amount different from the dishonoured cheque's value is invalid, rendering any subsequent criminal complaint under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881, non-maintainable. The court affirmed the strict, technical interpretation of the law, rejecting the defence that a discrepancy in the amount was a mere typographical error. The ruling highlighted that for a notice to be valid, the demanded amount must precisely match the cheque amount.

The Background of the Case

The legal dispute in Kaveri Plastics v. Mahdoom Bawa Bahrudeen Noorul originated from the dishonor of a cheque. The appellant, Kaveri Plastics, had issued a cheque to the respondent, Mahdoom Bawa Bahrudeen Noorul, for Rs. 1,00,00,000/-. When the cheque was dishonoured due to insufficient funds, Kaveri Plastics sent two demand notices to the