Srinagar, July 11 -- In a ruling clarifying the limits of a criminal court's jurisdiction in cheque dishonour cases, the High Court of J&K and Ladakh has held that once a complaint under the Negotiable Instruments Act is disposed of on the basis of a compromise and the accused is acquitted, the Magistrate becomes functus officio and cannot later enforce the terms of the settlement through execution proceedings unless the final order itself contains an executable judicial direction.

Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal delivered the judgment while allowing a petition filed by Gulla Ganaie alias Gulzar Ahmad Ganaie, setting aside the orders of the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Budgam, dated November 17, 2025 and May 6, 2026, which had initiated e...