The High Court · 2025

Petition under Section 528 of BNSS praying that in the circumstances stated in the Memorandum of Grounds of Criminal Petition, the High Court may be pleased to return the Passport No. R5259216, that was deposited with the Hon'ble lAdditional Senior Civil Judge, Ranga Reddy District, L.B.Nagar in order for the Petitioner to travel abroad. This Petition coming on for hearing, upon perusing the Memorandum of Grounds of Criminal Petition and upon hearing the arguments of Sri N. Jeevan Kumar, Advocate for the Petitioner and the Sri D. Arun Kumar, Additional Public Prosecutor on behalf of the Sole Respondent. The Court made the following: ORDER 'T]IIIi HON'BLE SMT. WSTICE K. SUJANA C:F IMINAL PETITI oN NO.3413 0F 2025 ORDER: TLLI s r -.r i rninal Petition is filed under -' Sect o r 528 of Bharatil'a l{;rg : rik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for shor t 'B'rlSS') to quash tl-re r -c . t' dated 23.12.2024 in Crl.M.P.No '79O tf 2024 \n C.C.No. L8 t' ','.22 on the hle of I-Additional Senior C vi. Judge, Ranga RedCr t)istrict, L.B.Nagar. The offences alle g':d against the petirrorrr':- i re under Sections 42O, 406,5O6 of Inrlien Penal Code anri rl,:c ir,tns 3 to 6 of Prize Chits and Money Oir';ulation Scheme {B r rr ng) Act (for short Act'). The petitioner is ;rccused No.8 in the r;e Ll case.

2. Cr[.]{ ll Cr.P.C, s cc 'io.790 of 2024 was frled under Set tlon 451 of : r'rg interim custody of passpc rr bearing No.R5259:r. ,a ;f the petitioner for a period of three nLor'.ths i.e., from Oi.O ..l r,l5 to 31.O3.2O25. The peLitioner a11e11es that he was faiseJy rnplicated in this case on falsr: a''rrI lrivolous grounds, t h :r lhe police arrested him and seized his l)assport No.R525911 € . Thereafter, petitioner was released orr L'ail; that the wife of ire . l.ioner is a software employee in Tata Crnr;ultancy at BelgiunL s .r':e 2022 and that he was invited to se,: tris child, 2 he requested the trial Court to return his passport for a period of three months from 01.01.2025 to 31.O3.2025.

3. Learned Additional h.rblic Prosecutor hled counter to the said petition aileging that the case was posted for trial, that accused Nos.l to 7, arld.9 to 11 in this case are already absconding and if the passport of the petitioner is returned, he may also abscond to Belgium. As such, prayed the trial Court to dismiss the said petition. The trial Court dismissed the said petition observing that as the case is at the stage of trial and the petitioner herein is only appearing before the Court. The allegations against the accused are that they created huge network and collected huge amounts from the public at large on the guise of faise promises. Further there are 83 cases pending against the company in which the petitioner herein is an employee and that the offence alleged against the petitioner is an economic offence.

4. Heard Sri N. Jeevan Kumar, learned counsel for the petitioner ald Sri D.Arun Kumar, learned Additional Public Prosecutor appearing for the respondent-State. /

5. The con t'rtion of learned counsel for the petitioner is that petitioner l e s ir genuine reason to travel abroad as h,l seeks to meet his ',v ilc' r,:nd child, that the trial Court failed tc, c,)nsider that the pe ,iti ,rer is regularly attending Court proceeCirgs a.nd the appreh,:nr i ;n that petitioner may flee the count{- ir.r based on mere sl)()c - jation and not on any material evidr:n< e. He further (:on t(,r . r:d that mere pendency of a criminal crs,: is not a grouncl [ri r':rtail the fundamental right unless t.lere is substanl,ial r',,, ri,:nce indicating a flight risk. Further-, pe [itioner is read5. to 'rrnish adequate securitlz and read\ l.o give undertakr n11 r r.larding his return to India within tht' ;ti:ulated time. That th lather of petitioner is the Dean ol'Inclila rfandhi Agricultlrr:e I Ir r'!'ersily, Chattisgarh, and his mother u'as also a retired Govt:r n r Lent employee in Chattisgarh Secretariat. € nd has deep rooletl : rltnection with India. Further, the A,:t do not impose zrbso lt l,:r restriction on travel and Courls have earlier granted pernri r ,ion to travel in this type of offences tr1. in Lposing appropriate r': . rlitions. Hence, prayed tJlis Court tc r1u: rsh the order in Clrl 1,4 :'.No.79O ol 2022 in C.C.No.18 of 2022.

6. On 1lu, rr,her hand, Iearned Assistant public pror.;ecutor would subnrit rat the accused in this case have coller:tel huge 4 amounts from the public and cheated them, the case is at the stage of trial, if the passport of petitioner is returned, he may abscond which may cause hardship to the trial. Hence, prayed to dismiss this petition. 7 . Considering the submissions made by both the counsel and the material on record, the petitioner herein hled petition before the trial Court to permit him to travel abroad as he intend to meet his wife and child. The case registered against the petitioner is numbered as C.C.No.18 of 2022. Except this petitioner all other accused are shown as absconding and no steps were taken by the prosecution to arrest those accused. Further the case was not split against this petitioner and there is no chance of completing trial in near future, as such prayed this Court to set aside the order of trial Court and to permit the petitioner to travel abroad as it is the fundamental right of the petitioner herein.

8. The record shows that petitioner is A.8, the trial is not yet commenced and his request is to travel abroad to see his wife and child. Crl.M.P.No.79O of 2024 was {iled by the petitioner before the trial Court requesting to permit him to go abroad from O 1.O 1.2025 to 3 1.O3.2O25. However, as the said period is / i .rt 5 elapsed, an,l t re wife of the petitioner has sent invita tion for seeing his r 1r i1d, the petitioner is directed to filt: fresh appllcatior b, l,.rre the trial Court with new dates eind in turn, the trial Cor.r ' is directed to consider the application for one month blr in16 :;ing appropriate conditions. 9 . With t ),r above directions, the Criminai I'etition is disposed o Misc: 1z r eous petitions, pending, if any, slLal stand SDr- MOHD. TSMAIL ,lDEFtlTY REGTSTRAR //TRUE COPY// a'

1. The I Additionai {jenior Civil Judge, Ranga Reddy District l. B Nagar 2 Two ccs to the )ubric prosecut"r, nij."corrt'toi *re state o1 i"r""ig.n, 3. One CC to Sr l Jeevan Kumar, Advocate [OPUC] 4. Two CD Cop es; Hyderabad. [C tJ I I "t SECTION OFFICER l closed To, Kam/PSL A$ --- HIGH COURT DATED:021051'1025 I4 ORDER CRLP.No.3413 of 2025 l(lt$- s I 3J ,J 2 2 ilAY ?ml r ?. t oc.9 rr,r TC U€ orl ,/t DISPOSING t] E THE CRIMINAL PE TITION .! \l-0 ,.t t i}.a