One of my clients recently had a case which I am explaining below and if you are stuck in such similar situation, here is what to do.
Note: Due to attorney-client privilege, I cannot disclose complete case details or identify the actual parties involved. However, I am sharing the essential facts and legal approach so that if you find yourself in a similar situation, you can understand the available solutions and legal remedies.
TL;DR: If the police are not registering an FIR in a landlord or commercial-premises dispute, the complaint does not end at the police station counter. You can send the substance of it in writing to the Superintendent of Police, and if that fails, move the Magistrate for a direction to investigate. Run the civil recovery suit alongside, because a criminal case alone will not return your money.
Rohan Gupta ran a restaurant and bar on a registered lease in Koregaon Park, Pune. Then, from around early February 2025, the water supply to the washrooms would be cut on Saturday nights, and the lift would be switched off with no notice. Small things on their own. Together they made a full house unworkable.
He tried to sublease and recover part of his investment. Prospective tenants would visit, show interest, and go cold by the next morning. The landlord, Vikram Malhotra, was calling them directly. He then installed his own operator, Suresh Kadam, moved in a tenant from another property he owned, and started collecting rent in cash without receipts. He also tried to take control of the liquor licence. Gupta cancelled that licence and transferred it to protect it. Some weeks later, around mid-April 2025, the premises were handed to a different party, the fixtures and stock were cleared out, and somewhere close to ₹6 crore of his investment went with them.
Written complaints for theft and criminal trespass went in. Nothing happened. Escalation to the Commissioner's office produced no FIR either. That is when he approached the Chamber of Advocate Sudhir Rao. Advocate Sudhir Rao's experience in commercial-premises and police-inaction matters is what changed the way the file was built and argued, and the complaint finally began to be examined on its merits instead of being turned away at the counter.
Key Facts of the Case
- A registered lease for a restaurant and bar in a high-demand F&B area of Pune, with the client holding fixtures, stock and a liquor licence.
- Operational harassment over roughly three months, including water supply cuts and the lift being switched off.
- The landlord interfered with the client's attempts to sublease and installed his own operator, collecting cash rent without receipts.
- Attempted interference with the liquor licence, following which the client cancelled and transferred it.
- Around mid-April 2025, the premises were re-let to another party and the client's assets were sold off.
- Written complaints for theft and criminal trespass were filed, but no FIR was registered despite escalation.
- The matter involved both criminal remedies and a civil claim for recovery and injunction, so the two had to be sequenced rather than run randomly.
The Direct Legal Answer
Yes, you can force the issue. The police cannot simply sit on a written complaint alleging a cognizable offence.
What actually works to get an FIR registered?
Send the substance of your complaint in writing and by post to the Superintendent of Police under Section 173(4) BNSS. If that gets no result, file a complaint before the Magistrate seeking a direction to investigate under Section 175(3) BNSS. In practice, the Magistrate route moves files more reliably than repeated station visits, because it creates a judicial record of the refusal.
Does political connection change the strategy?
It changes the sequence, not the options. Everything goes in writing, everything is receipted, and the paper trail is built before escalation. Verbal requests to a connected local station rarely survive scrutiny.
Which documents matter most?
The registered lease, the licence records, the payment trail for fixtures and deposits, inventory and purchase bills, and anything showing the property was handed to a new party.
Should the criminal case and civil suit run together?
Usually yes, but not in the same week. The criminal complaint fixes the misconduct. The civil suit protects the money and the premises.
Advice in Such Cases
Consult with Lawyer: The very basic and important step to start is talk to Lawyer / advocate. You should not hesitate in paying his consultation fee i.e. might be in range of Rs. 10,000 to 50,000 depends case to case. He is helping you in this situation to come out. He is expert in the domain and can help you explain the procedure which you might have never explored. A good lawyer can get the issues resolved much faster than you think.
Put every communication in writing from today. Stop calling the landlord or his operator to negotiate, because those calls are narrated very differently later.
Preserve your records now, before the premises change hands twice more and the paperwork becomes the only thing you have.
This category of dispute needs an advocate who regularly handles commercial-premises matters and police inaction, since the procedural and evidentiary nuances involved are often missed by a general practitioner.
Applicable Sections of Law
The criminal side falls under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023: Section 303 (theft), Section 316 (criminal breach of trust), Section 318(4) (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), and Section 329 (criminal trespass). Procedure is under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, chiefly Section 173 for the FIR and Section 175(3) for a Magistrate's direction to investigate.
The civil side rests on the Transfer of Property Act, 1882 for the rights and obligations of lessor and lessee, the Specific Relief Act, 1963 for declaratory and injunctive relief, and Order 39 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 for a temporary injunction.
Punishment and Penalties
Theft under Section 303 BNS carries imprisonment up to three years, or fine, or both. It is cognizable and non-bailable, and compoundable with the court's permission. Criminal breach of trust under Section 316 BNS carries up to five years, or fine, or both, and is cognizable and non-bailable. Cheating under Section 318(4) BNS carries up to seven years and fine, and is cognizable and non-bailable. Criminal trespass under Section 329 BNS carries up to three months, or fine up to ₹5,000, or both, and is cognizable and bailable.
Jurisdiction — Where to File the Case
The FIR goes to the police station with territorial jurisdiction over the premises, because that is where the alleged offences took place. If the police refuse, the complaint before the Magistrate lies in the court having jurisdiction over that same area.
The civil suit for recovery, injunction or declaration is filed where the property is situated, before the civil court with the appropriate pecuniary jurisdiction, which in most districts is the Court of the Civil Judge Junior Division or Senior Division depending on the value of the claim. A writ petition for police inaction goes to the High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution.
What if Police Refuse to File FIR?
Refusal is common in property disputes dressed up as civil wrongs, and the standard line at the counter is that you should go to civil court. That line is sometimes a genuine jurisdictional judgment and sometimes just a way of closing the file. The way to find out which one you are dealing with is to force a written decision. The escalation has four rungs, and you climb them in order:
- Station level. Give the complaint in writing, keep a copy, and get the receiving stamp or diary number on your copy. Under Section 173 BNSS, information about a cognizable offence may be given orally, in writing or by electronic communication, and if given orally it must be reduced to writing and read back to you.
- Superintendent of Police. Section 173(4) BNSS lets a person aggrieved send the substance of the information, in writing and by post, to the Superintendent of Police. If the SP is satisfied that the information discloses a cognizable offence, the SP can either investigate it himself or direct a subordinate officer to do so.
- Magistrate. Section 175(3) BNSS allows a complaint to be filed before the Magistrate, who may direct an investigation. This is the rung that most often produces movement, because it puts the refusal on a judicial record.
- High Court. A writ petition under Article 226 can be filed for a direction to register the FIR. It is the slowest and should come after the first three have been tried, since courts ask what else you did.
Documents to Keep Ready
The strength of a police-inaction complaint is almost entirely documentary. What you should be able to hand over in one folder:
- The registered lease deed, and any renewal or amendment.
- Proof of the licence you held and the record of its cancellation or transfer.
- Payment trail for fixtures, fit-outs, security deposit and advance rent — bank statements, invoices, purchase bills.
- Inventory lists, stock registers, and photographs or video of the premises as you left them.
- Anything showing the premises were handed to another party afterwards — a new tenant's signage, a new licence application, rent receipts, listing photographs.
- Copies of every complaint you filed, with the receiving stamp, and every postal receipt and acknowledgement.
- Your own correspondence with the landlord, kept in one place and in order.
How Long This Takes
Be realistic about the calendar. A written station complaint either produces an FIR within days or produces nothing for weeks. The SP letter under Section 173(4) has no fixed statutory clock attached to it, and responses vary widely by district. A Section 175(3) complaint to the Magistrate typically gets its first listing within a few weeks, but the direction itself can take months, and the investigation after a direction takes longer still.
The civil suit runs on its own clock. A temporary injunction application under Order 39 CPC is usually taken up early, sometimes within weeks of filing, because the court hears urgent applications first. The suit for recovery itself will take years. That is not a reason to skip it. It is a reason to file it early, because the interim protection is where most of the practical value sits.
What a Criminal Case Will Not Do
This is the part that clients resist hearing. An FIR, a charge sheet, a conviction even — none of these return your investment. The criminal process punishes conduct. It does not hand back ₹6 crore.
Recovery comes from the civil suit, or from a settlement negotiated while both cases are live. In some matters a court can order compensation as part of the criminal proceedings, and the BNSS scheme does provide for it, but it is not a reliable substitute for a properly pleaded civil claim. Treat the criminal complaint as the thing that fixes the misconduct and creates pressure, and the civil suit as the thing that reaches the money.
There is also an honest possibility that on your facts there is nothing to argue on the criminal side at all — that what happened is a lease dispute and a commercial fight, and the police were right to stay out. If that is the assessment after reading your documents, that is what you will be told, and the civil route becomes the whole strategy rather than half of it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the police simply refuse to register an FIR in a landlord dispute?
They should not, if the complaint discloses a cognizable offence such as theft or criminal trespass. But they frequently do, on the reasoning that the dispute is civil in nature. The refusal is not the end of the road — it is the trigger for escalating to the SP and then to the Magistrate.
How do I complain if the police are not registering an FIR?
Put the substance in writing to the Superintendent of Police under Section 173(4) BNSS, sent by registered post, and then file a complaint before the Magistrate under Section 175(3) BNSS. Keep a receipted copy of everything at every stage.
Can I run a criminal complaint and a civil suit at the same time?
Yes, the two can proceed together, and in commercial-premises matters they usually should. They do different work. The criminal complaint addresses the alleged offence; the civil suit protects your money and your rights under the lease. Just make sure the pleadings in each are consistent, because the other side will read them against you.
Is there a deadline to file?
There are time limits, and they matter. The law prescribes periods beyond which a Magistrate cannot take cognizance of certain offences — broadly, one year where the offence carries up to three years, and three years where it carries more than three but up to seven. On the civil side, a suit for compensation for breach of contract generally has a three-year limitation running from when the right to sue arises. Do not sit on the file while you negotiate.
Will the landlord's political connections stop the case?
They can slow it down. They rarely stop it once the matter is before a Magistrate, because at that stage the file is on a judicial record and someone has to answer for it. This is precisely why everything should be in writing from the beginning — verbal pressure at a local station leaves no trace and is the easiest thing to defeat.
Will the FIR get my money back?
No. Recovery comes from the civil suit or a negotiated settlement. Treat them as two separate jobs.
What does a lawyer actually cost?
Consultation fees in this category of matter commonly run somewhere between ₹10,000 and ₹50,000 depending on the complexity and the forum. Litigation fees are separate and depend on how far the matter travels. Ask for the fee structure in writing before you engage anyone.
This article is general information about Indian law and is not legal advice on your own situation. Every matter turns on its own facts and documents.
If You Are Facing This Right Now
Send the following to the chamber, and the first read will tell us whether there is a criminal case here at all:
- The lease deed, in full.
- The written complaints you already filed, with the receiving stamps.
- Any postal receipts or acknowledgements from the SP's office or the Commissioner's office.
- In the body of the email, a two-line note — what the property was, when you were shut out, and what you are owed.
Do not wait for the landlord to respond before writing. The timeline on both the criminal and the civil side is running while you wait, and the documentary record is easier to build now than to reconstruct a year later.
Write to /contact-us or email me@sudhirrao.com, or call +91 97295 06771. The chamber is at Lawyers' Chamber, Chamber No. 86, Supreme Court of India, New Delhi – 110001. If the matter is a family or matrimonial dispute arising out of the same property, Adv. Jyoti Rao, associate, Bar Council of Delhi D/891/2023, handles that side.
Advocate Sudhir Rao, Supreme Court of India
Facing a similar matter? Speak to a criminal lawyer in Delhi — Advocate Sudhir Rao appears in bail, trial and appellate matters before the Delhi District Courts, the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court of India.