1. The following five points have been referred to a Larger Bench:-

(i) Whether any appeal filed by the victim under proviso to Section 372 can be dismissed summarily in the event if no sufficient ground for interference is made out and thereby apply to the provisions of Section 384 Cr.P.C. to such appeals filed by the victims.

(ii) Whether the proviso to Section 372 as introduced by the amending Act No.5 of 2009 which has been brought into effect on 31.12.2009 can be given effect to in cases where the offence occurred prior to 31.12.2009 and thereby given the right of appeal to the victim in the event; (a) whether the court below has acquitted the accused or (b) has convicted the accused for a lesser offence or (c) has imposed inadequate compensation. Though the judgment in such cases may have been passed by the court below after 31.12.2009.

(iii) Whether the appeal by the victim under proviso to Section 372 is also required to be dealt with in the same manner as an appeal filed by the State under Section 378 Cr.P.C. and the provisions of Section 378 are required to be read into the provisions of Section 372 Cr.P.C. with regard to appeals filed by the victims.

(iv) The further question arises whether the State can maintain an appeal under Section 378 Cr.P.C. after the amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure, 2009 in cases where the court below has convicted the accused for a lesser offence than the one charged when seen in the light of the amendment to Section 372 where under the proviso appeals have been provided for three separate and distinct purposes namely; acquittal, conviction for lesser offence and awarding inadequate compensation, in contrast Section 378 on the other hand, only refers to order of acquittal passed by the court below in contradistinction to passing a judgment of conviction for a lesser offence as mentioned in proviso to Section 372.

(v) Whether the victim can prefer an appeal for enhancement of the sentence when no such express right has been conferred under the proviso to Section 372 Cr.P.C.

2. Learned counsel for the parties state that points at serial No.1, 3 to 5 need not be answered for the reason in the decision reported as (2015) 15 SCC 613 , Satya Pal Singh Vs. State of M.P. & Ors., the Supreme Court held that the proviso to Section 372 of the Code of Criminal Procedure cannot be read as conferred upon the victim a right to prefer an appeal against an order acquitting the accused or convicting the accused for a lesser offence or imposing inadequate compensation. The right is to file an application seeking leave to appeal. In the decision reported as (2010) 12 SCC 599 , National Commission of Women Vs. State of Delhi & Anr., it has been held that a victim has no right under the proviso to challenge the sentence on ground of it being inadequate.

3. As regards point No.2, the date wherefrom right accrues to a victim to seek leave to appeal, in the decision reported as (2011) 6 SCC 739 , Thirumalai Chemicals Ltd. v. Union of India, , the Supreme Court clearly held that the right of appeal being a substantive right always acts prospectively. It is trite law that every statute is prospective unless it is expressly or by necessary implication made to have retrospective operation. This is a consistent position of law, and has been affirmed by the Supreme Court in numerous cases, such as AIR 1994 SC 2623 , Hitendra Vishnu Thakur v. State of Maharashtra, (2005) 4 SCC 480 , Kailash v. Nanhku & Ors., and (2014) 5 SCC 219 , H.P. State Electricity Regulatory Commission v. H.P. SEB,

4. This has also been the view of most of the High Courts, with respect to this question. The Punjab and Haryana High Court, in the decision reported as (2014) 1 PLR 1, CRM-790-MA-2010, Tata Steel v. Atma Tube Projects, , held :

"Since right to appeal is a substantive right and it cannot be inferred by implication unless the Statute expressly provides so, the only inescapable conclusion would be to hold that the right to appeal given to a victim under proviso to Section 372of the Code is prospective and has become enforceable w.e.f. December 31, 2009 only. A victim is entitled to prefer appeal in respect of any type of order referred to in the proviso to Section 372 if such order has been passed on or after December 31, 2009 irrespective of the date of registration of FIR or the date of occurrence etc. To be more specific, it is clarified that it is the date of passing of the order to be appealed from and not any other fact situation, which shall determine the right to appeal of a victim."

5. Similarly, in the decision reported as 2014 Crim. Law Journal 1046, Parmeshwar Mandal Vs. The State of Bihar, the Patna High Court held:

"...the said proviso contains both substantive part, creating right in the victim to prefer an appeal, and procedural part, by identifying the forum for filing such an appeal. It is not in dispute that the substantive part of law operates prospectively.....it has to be concluded that the right of victim, to prefer an appeal in terms of said proviso to Section 372, became available to the victim(s) of all cases in which orders were passed by any criminal court acquitting the accused or convicting him for a lesser offence or imposing inadequate compensation, on or after 31st of December, 2009. In other words, date of judgment of a criminal court has to be necessarily treated as the relevant date for applying the test of maintainability of appeal by the victim under three contingencies laid down under the proviso to Section 372 of the Code, irrespective of the date of occurrence, institution of the case, cognizance or commitment."

6. Thus, the effective date is 31.12.2009. Judgments passed on or after said date are the ones in respect whereto, irrespective of the date of the offence, the victim can avail the right to file an application seeking leave to appeal.

7. Reference stands answered accordingly.