High Court
Legal Reasoning
1-ba-1722-2024.odt(1)IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAYBENCH AT AURANGABAD BAIL APPLICATION NO. 1722 OF 2024WITHCRIMINAL APPLICATION NO.4110 OF 20241.Anil Balaji Sontakke2.Jyotiram Navnath Autade3.Rohit Balaji Gaikwad..ApplicantsVersus1.The State of Maharashtra2.The Superintendent of Police,Beed, Dist. Beed...Respondents...Advocate for Applicant : Mr. Salunke Sudarshan J.APP for Respondent/State : Mr. A.B. Girase, Government Pleader &Mr. A.A.A. Khan Advocate for Complainant : Mr. S.G. KawadeWITHBAIL APPLICATION NO. 1664 OF 2024Rajatkumar Rajesaheb Jedhe..ApplicantVersusThe State of Maharashtra..Respondent...Advocate for Applicant : Mr. P.P. MoreAPP for Respondent/State : Mr. A.B. Girase, Government Pleader &Mr. A.A.A. Khan WITHBAIL APPLICATION NO. 1684 OF 2024Mayur Suresh Kadam..ApplicantVersus
Legal Reasoning
1-ba-1722-2024.odt(2)1.The State of Maharashtra2.The Superintendent of Police,Beed, Dist. Beed...Respondents...Advocate for Applicant : Mr. Salunke Sudarshan J.APP for Respondent/State : Mr. A.B. Girase, Government Pleader &Mr. A.A.A. Khan WITHBAIL APPLICATION NO. 1709 OF 2024Asaram Datta Gavhane..ApplicantVersus1.The State of Maharashtra2.The Superintendent of Police,Beed, Dist. Beed...Respondents...Advocate for Applicant : Mr. Salunke Sudarshan J.APP for Respondent/State : Mr. A.B. Girase, Government Pleader &Mr. A.A.A. Khan ... CORAM : S.G. MEHARE, J. DATED : SEPTEMBER 30, 2024PER COURT:-1. Heard learned counsels for the respective applicants,learned Government Pleader for the State and learned counsel Mr.S.G. Kawade for the victim.2. The applicants seek bail in Crime No.105 of 2024registered with Parli City Police Station, District Beed forthe offences punishable under Sections 302, 307, 120(B), 326, 323, 1-ba-1722-2024.odt(3)143, 148, 149, 504, 506, 201 of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 3,4, 25 of the Arms Act.3. The incident happened on 29.06.2024 at about 04.00 to04.30 pm in front of the house of injured Mahadev. Before theincident, the co-accused Mahadev Uddhav Gitte and RajabhauSanjivan Neharkar had been to Gyanoba for demanding the hand loanmoney. They were asking for the money to Bapurao BaburaoAndhale. They threatened Bapurao that if he would not pay moneyby the evening, they would shot fire him. Bapurao promised them tomake the money arrangement by evening. In the evening, theborrower Bapurao called the first informant and told that MahadevGitte and Baban Gitte called him with money. Since Bapurao couldnot arrange for money, he told the first informant that they would goto Mahadev to ask for further time. Therefore, the first informant, theborrower and other few persons went to the house of Mahadev, theco-accused. There were other persons present except the presentapplicants. Where the incident happened, both parties have assaultedeach other. The borrower Bapurao was killed in that incident. Thefirst informant also suffered the fire injury. The prosecution has afurther story that after the gun shots, the assailants flee away. Thefirst informant was taken to the hospital with borrower Bapurao.Bapurao was declared dead there. So far as the role of the applicants,the prosecution has a case that they were in contact with other co- 1-ba-1722-2024.odt(4)accused. They took the injured Mahadev who had also lodged thecross report first to Hospital at Kaij. Officer of the Kaij Hospitalreferred him to Ambejogai Medical College. They took them first toDharur and to Ambejogai Hospital. The prosecution has a case that inthe said Scorpio car, not only Mahadev was there but other threeaccused were also there. Main allegations against the applicants werethat they assisted the co-accused to flee away. They werecontinuously in contact with each other. They had deliberately notadmitted the injured Mahadev to Ambejogai Hospital. But first theywent to Kaij Hospital and then went to Ambejogai Hospital. Theinjured Mahadev is still under treatment in the hospital at Ambejogai.4.The applicants were arrested on 01.07.2024 and04.07.2024 respectively. Since then they are behind bar. They wereinterrogated. From one applicant – Jyotiram Autade, the police haverecovered country made pistol with magazines loaded with livecartridges, one pillow from the nearby place of Taluka Washi, DistrictOsmanabad. The prosecution also relied on the CDR reports to pressinto service the active involvements of the applicants in the crime.However, the documents placed on record as regards the CDR areincomplete. Therefore, the learned Government Pleader could notsatisfactorily argue the matter. The investigation officer is present inthe Court. 1-ba-1722-2024.odt(5)5.The case diary produced before the Court seems to beincomplete. In such a situation, it is very difficult to believe at thisjuncture the case of the prosecution that the applicants werecontinuously in contact with the other co-accused. It is also difficultto find out their mobile phone tower locations. It has been allegedthat they were travelled towards Pune. So, presently there are noCCTV footage recorded at the Toll Naka on Pune Road. The learnedGovernment Pleader has argued that one of the CCTV footage fromone petrol pump is recovered, but it is not greatly helpful at thisjuncture.6.Learned counsel for the injured Gyanoba adopted thearguments advanced by the learned Government Pleader.7.Learned counsels for the applicants vehemently arguedthat this is a politically motivated matter. The applicants have no roleto play except admitting the injured Mahadev to the hospital.However, the recovery of weapon at the instance of Jyotiram is falselycreated. He did not know about the incident and weapons used in thecrime. They have argued that when the injured Mahadev was goingto hospital after the injury sustained to him in the incident, his vehiclewas failed at Village Sakud. One car came from behind. The personsin the car were alighted, Mahadev asked them for help. Therefore,they made a phone call to Applicant – Rohit. Thereafter, all theseapplicants reached to the spot and took the injured to the hospital. 1-ba-1722-2024.odt(6)Even if such allegations are admitted, in the worst case the applicantswould be charged for the offence punishable under Section 201 of theIndian Penal Code, which is punishable upto seven years. Theapplicants are languishing in jail for around 90 days. Nothing is to berecovered from them. They have been falsely implicated in the crimeout of the political pressure. The prosecution has no cogent andreliable evidence to prove the active role allegedly played by theapplicants. The material investigation has been completed against theapplicants. Absconding of the other co-accused is no ground to refusethe bail. There are antecedents to the discredit of accused Mayur andAnil. Applicant – Anil was arraigned in the offence of murder andremaining offences were under the Gambling Act and MaharashtraProhibition Act. Considering the role attributed to the applicant,those antecedents would not come in the way even the prosecutioncase is admitted as it is. The foremost important argument they wereinsisting upon was that the applicants were not the actual assailants.They just helped the injured to admit him to the hospital. Thereafter,the story of assisting the co-accused to flee away was coloured. Theprosecution did not have any evidence to believe at this juncture onsuch allegations. 8.Perused the applications. The case diary and the chart ofCDR prepared does not bear the signature of the officers orinvestigation officer. Some call details without any details of the 1-ba-1722-2024.odt(7)holders of the phone numbers, its tower location has been attachedwith this chart. So, it is very difficult to accept the allegations aslevelled against the applicants at this juncture. This Court has alreadyobserved above that the complete investigation papers have not beenplaced before the Court. In the circumstances, it is very difficult tobelieve the prosecution case at this juncture. Be that as it may,considering the allegations levelled against the applicants, admittedlythey were not the actual assailants. Their role is after the incidenthappened and the injured Mahadev called them for help. It issurprising that the prosecution would not satisfy the Court that whenthe first MLC was sent to the Police Station Kaij or Ambejogai, whichofficer immediately visited the hospital. However, fortunately theprosecution did not deny that the Applicant – Rajatkumar admittedthe injured Mahadev to the hospital. In a normal course, if a personis seriously injured, the person admitting him or anybody with himcould not leave him or her alone in the hospital. Since the day ofadmitting to the hospital, Mahadev is still hospitalized in theAmbejogai Hospital. 9.After having gone through the papers placed before theCourt and arguments advanced by the learned Government Pleaderand the counsel for the injured, the Court is of the view that thematerial investigation against the applicants has been completed. Atthis juncture, there is no complete record to believe the prosecution 1-ba-1722-2024.odt(8)case. Therefore, the applicants deserve bail. Hence, the followingorder :O R D E R(i)All Bail Applications are allowed.(ii)Applicants in all the above bail applications, be releasedon bail on furnishing P.B. and S.B. of Rs.50,000/- (RupeesFifty Thousand only) each with one solvent surety of the likeamount each in the above crime, on the conditions that ;(a)The applicants should attend the police station as andwhen called on written notice by the investigation officer tillfiling the charge sheet.(b)After the charge sheet is filed, the applicants shouldattend the trial on each and every date.(iii)This Court passed the order dated 27.09.2024 directingthe investigation officer not to file the charge sheet today unlessthis Court passes any order. Today is the last day of filing thecharge sheet as required by law. This Court passed the orders ofgranting bail to the applicants at 12.10 pm. Now, theinvestigation officer is at liberty to file the charge sheet in theconcerned Court receiving the acknowledgement of time anddate of filing of the charge sheet.
Decision
1-ba-1722-2024.odt(9)(iv)Criminal Application No.4110 of 2024 stands disposed of. (S.G. MEHARE, J.)Mujaheed//