Diwakar Dut t Rat uri v. St at e of Ut t arakhand

t he applicant , Ms. Sheet al Selwal, cont ended t hat t he applicant innocent and has been falsely im plicat ed. I t was subm it t ed t hat he was m erely a t em porary clerk wit h no aut horit y t o open account s or m ot ivat e deposit ors. Responsibilit y for such act s, according t o t he defence, lay wit h t he t hen Secret ary, Sundar Singh Kaint ura. The applicant denies any personal use of t he funds and assert s t hat t he alleged short fall is t he liabilit y of t he Secret ary. I t is furt her argued t hat t he applicant has been in cust ody since 01.09.2022, t he charge sheet has been filed, and he has no crim inal ant ecedent s. He is a perm anent resident of Tehri Garhwal and not a flight risk.

4. Per cont ra, learned Brief Holder for t he St at e, Mr. Pram od Tiwari, opposed t he bail applicat ion. He subm it t ed t hat t he applicant m anipulat ed t he t rust of illit erat e or sem i- lit erat e villagers, procuring t heir t hum b im pressions or signat ures on blank slips and form s, which were m isused t o effect fraudulent wit hdrawals or t o fabricat e false records of deposit s. The em bezzlem ent was syst em at ic and prot ract ed. The St at e also point ed out t hat t he applicant ’s part ial 2 repayment of ₹3,80,000/- am ount s t o a prim a facie adm ission of guilt .

5. This Court has carefully considered t he subm issions of bot h sides and exam ined t he m at erial on record, including t he FI R, charge sheet , st at em ent s of wit nesses, and t he order dat ed 01.05.2024 passed t he learned Dist rict and Sessions Judge, Tehri Garhwal, rej ect ing a prior bail applicat ion. The prim ary considerat ion in bail m at t ers t o balance t he individual’s right t o libert y wit h t he broader public int erest .

6. While t he applicant is presum ed innocent unt il proven guilt y, t he Court m ust t ake int o account t he seriousness of t he allegat ions, t he m at erial collect ed during invest igat ion, t he possibility of t am pering wit h evidence or influencing wit nesses, and t he risk of abscondence.

7. I n t he present case, t he allegat ions are grave, involving crim inal breach of t rust , cheat ing, and forgery over a sust ained period. The applicant , in his role at t he Gram in Bachat Kendra, allegedly exploit ed t he confidence of villagers who were unlet t ered or m arginally educat ed, leading t o a m isappropriat ion of over ₹24 lakh over ten years.

8. The subm ission t hat t he applicant was m erely a t em porary clerk and bore no responsibilit y for t he financial discrepancies appears unt enable. Docum ent ary evidence and wit ness t est im onies indicat e his act ive role in collect ing deposit s, issuing receipt s, and recording ent ries in t he passbooks of account holders. 3

9. More significant ly, t he fact t hat t he applicant returned ₹3,80,000/- t o t he societ y support s t he St at e’s claim of his direct involvem ent t he m isappropriat ion.

10. St at em ent s recorded during t rial corroborat e t he St at e's narrat ive and t he m odus operandi m isuse of form s and fabricat ed deposit records point s t oward a prem edit at ed and decept ive schem e. Though it is t rue t hat t he charge sheet has been filed and evidence collect ion is over, t he seriousness of t he charges and t heir pot ent ial im pact on t he confidence of rural deposit ors cannot be overlooked.

11. The co- accused, who were released on not ice under Sect ion 41A Cr.P.C., are charged wit h lesser roles. The applicant , however, st ands ident ified as t he principal wrongdoer wit h direct and docum ent ary links t o t he financial fraud.

12. The Suprem e Court consist ent ly observed t hat while “ bail is t he rule and j ail t he except ion,” in econom ic offences affect ing a sect ion of society, court s m ust exercise caut ion and diligence. ORD ER I n view of t he foregoing discussion, t his Court finds no ground t o grant bail t o t he applicant at t his st age. The applicat ion is accordingly rej ect ed. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ A SH I SH N A I TH A N I , J. Dt : 17.04.2025 SB SHIKSHA BINJOLA DN: c=IN, o=HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND, ou=HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND, 2.5.4.20=3410ef86ae41ec9fbabcd5dba6b3a2c24b5 aa08b09c12f21822fbd40bf639b1c, postalCode=263001, st=UTTARAKHAND, serialNumber=FD80A2D028949381C52796A542D7 FF0A9BED00E67B5283D205F18FE29BDF5DD9, cn=SHIKSHA BINJOLA 4