Restoration of complaints dismissed for default to advance substantive justice

dictates that criminal courts exercising jurisdiction under the Code of Criminal Procedure must prioritize the adjudication of disputes on their merits rather than terminating proceedings on hyper-technical procedural defaults. When a complaint filed under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 is dismissed for default due to the non-appearance of the complainant or their counsel, the overarching consideration for appellate and revisional courts remains the furtherance of substantial justice. Procedural rules are handmaidens of justice designed to facilitate a fair hearing and resolve substantive claims rather than operate as traps to extinguish genuine grievances. Where absence is not shown to be contumacious, deliberate, or an abuse of the court's process, the interest of justice heavily tilts in favor of setting aside the dismissal order and reviving the proceedings so that the underlying statutory remedy is not frustrated by an inadvertent procedural lapse. (Yatendra Singh Vs State of U.P. & Another | 2026 INSC 109)