Danish v. St at e of Ut t arakhand

: Mr. Bhaskar Chandra Joshi, A.G.A. H o n ’ b l e A sh i sh N a i t h a n i , J. The present applicat ion under Sect ion 483 of t he Bharat iya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhit a, 2023 has been filed seeking bail by t he applicant- Danish, who is in j udicial cust ody since 16.08.2024 in connect ion wit h Case Crim e No. 402 of 2024, regist ered at Police St at ion Kot wali Gangnahar, Dist rict Haridwar, under Sect ions 142 and 74 of t he Bharat iya Nyaya Sanhit a,

2. The FI R in t he present m at t er was lodged on

14.08.2024 by t he inform ant alleging t hat his daught er, aged about 18 years, had gone m issing on 12.08.2024 at around 10: 00 AM. The FI R was init ially regist ered under Sect ion 87 of t he BNS. During t he invest igat ion, t he vict im was t raced, and upon t he arrest and confessional st at em ent s of co- accused Abdul Daeem @ Saddam , t he nam e of t he present applicant surfaced for t he first t im e. Consequent ly, Sect ions 142 and 74 of t he BNS were invoked. I t is not in disput e t hat t he 1 nam e of t he applicant does not find m ent ion in t he FI R.

3. Learned counsel for t he applicant subm it s t hat t he applicant has been falsely im plicat ed and had no role in t he alleged offence. I t is cont ended t hat t he vict im , who is adm it t edly a m aj or, had volunt arily accom panied t he co- accused and was recovered from a rent ed room allegedly rent ed by t he applicant .

4. I t furt her subm it t ed t hat t he m edical exam inat ion conduct ed on 15.08.2024 revealed no int ernal or ext ernal inj uries on t he body of t he vict im . Specifically, t he m edical report records t hat “ no int ernal inj uries [ were] seen at t he t im e of exam inat ion.” The learned counsel argues t hat no allegat ion of sexual assault was m ade against t he applicant eit her in t he m edical hist ory or during t he init ial st age of invest igat ion.

5. The involvem ent of t he applicant has been inferred solely on t he basis of t he subsequent confessional st at em ent s of t he co- accused and t he st at em ent of t he vict im recorded under Sect ion 183 of t he BNSS.

6. I t is also urged t hat t he st at em ent recorded under Sect ion 183 of t he BNSS is t ut ored, and no overt act has been at t ribut ed t o t he applicant indicat ing any act ive part icipat ion in t he com m ission of t he offence. The applicant has no crim inal ant ecedent s, is a perm anent resident of Dist rict Haridwar, undert akes t o cooperat e wit h t he t rial. I t is point ed out t hat t he charge sheet has already been filed, and furt her cust odial int errogat ion of t he applicant is not required. At t ent ion is also drawn t o t he fact t hat co- accused Naeem has been grant ed bail by t he learned 2 Sessions Judge vide order dat ed 27.08.2024.

7. Per cont ra, learned A.G.A. appearing for t he St at e has opposed t he bail applicat ion, cont ending t hat t he applicant played an act ive role in wrongfully confining t he vict im and out raging her m odest y. Reliance is placed on t he st at em ent of t he vict im under Sect ion 183 of t he BNSS, wherein she alleges t hat t he applicant , in a st at e of int oxicat ion, m isbehaved wit h her and t hat he used t o lock t he room from out side whenever he st epped out . The St at e cont ends t hat t he role of t he applicant cannot be viewed in isolat ion and t hat t he act s at t ribut ed t o him facilit at ed t he principal accused in t he com m ission of t he offence.

8. Having considered t he subm issions advanced on behalf of t he part ies and perused t he m at erial available on record, it is evident t hat t he applicant is not nam ed in t he FI R and his nam e surfaced during invest igat ion. The vict im is of m aj orit y age, and t he m edical exam inat ion does not indicat e any signs of physical violence. The clear m edical observat ion of “ no int ernal inj uries seen” furt her weakens t he prosecut ion’s version of any overt act com m it t ed by t he applicant . The st at em ent under Sect ion 183 BNSS im plicat ing t he applicant cam e at a belat ed st age and is not corroborat ed by any independent evidence.

9. Furt herm ore, t he applicant has no prior crim inal hist ory and t he charge sheet has already been subm it t ed. Co- accused Naeem has already been grant ed bail. I n circum st ances, cont inued incarcerat ion of t he applicant , especially when t he t rial m ay t ake considerable t im e t o conclude, would not be j ust ified. 3

10. The Hon’ble Suprem e Court in t he case of D a t a r a m Si n g h v . St a t e o f U.P., ( 2 0 1 8 ) 3 SCC 2 2 has em phasized t he principle t hat “ bail is t he rule and j ail is t he except ion. I n Sa t e n d e r K u m a r A n t i l v . CBI , ( 2 0 2 2 ) 1 0 SCC 5 1 , t he Court held t hat under t rials should not be unnecessarily det ained once t he invest igat ion is com plet e and t he charge sheet is filed. Furt her, in t he case of A r n e sh K u m a r v . St a t e o f Bi h a r ( 2 0 1 4 ) 8 SCC 2 7 3 , t he Apex Court caut ioned against m echanical arrest and em phasized t he im port ance of safeguarding personal libert y.

11. I n view of t he t ot alit y of circum st ances and wit hout expressing any opinion on t he m erit s of t he case, t his Court finds it t o be a fit case for t he grant of bail.

12. Accordingly, t he bail applicat ion is allowed.

13. Let t he applicant—Danish, be released on bail on furnishing a personal bond and t wo suret ies of like am ount t o t he sat isfact ion of t he court concerned, subj ect t o t he following condit ions: “ ( a) The applicant shall not evidence or influence any wit ness; t am per wit h t he ( b) The applicant shall appear before t he t rial fixed unless court on each and every dat e exem pt ed by t he court concerned. I n case of breach of any of ( c) t he above condit ions, t he prosecut ion shall be at libert y t o m ove for cancellat ion of bail.” _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ A SH I SH N A I TH A N I , J. Dt : 27.03.2025 SB SHIKSHA BINJOLA DN: c=IN, o=HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND, ou=HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND, 2.5.4.20=3410ef86ae41ec9fbabcd5dba6b3a2c24b5aa0 8b09c12f21822fbd40bf639b1c, postalCode=263001, st=UTTARAKHAND, serialNumber=FD80A2D028949381C52796A542D7FF0 A9BED00E67B5283D205F18FE29BDF5DD9, cn=SHIKSHA BINJOLA 4