Suraj Kumar v. State Of U.P. Thru. Prin. Secy. Home Lko. And Another

1. Heard learned counsel for the applicant and learned AGA for the State as well as perused the record.

2. The present application has been filed by the applicant for the following main relief(s):- "Wherefore, it is most respectfully prayed that this Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to quash the impugned order dated 29.05.2025 passed by Additional Sessions Judge/Special Judge Gangster Act, Court No.8, Barabanki, in S.C. No. 1906/2024, (State Vs. Suraj Kumar and others) in Case Crime No. 0001/2024, U/S-3(1) of U.P. Gangster and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, Police Station-Satrikh, District-Barabanki, as contained in Annexure No.1 to this petition. And it is further prayed that this Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to quash the entire proceeding of S.C. No. 1906/2024, (State Vs. Suraj Kumar and others) in Case Crime No. 0001/2024, U/S-3(1) of U.P. Gangster and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, Police Station- Satrikh, District-Barabanki, pending in the court of Additional Sessions Judge/Special Judge Gangster Act, Court No.8, Barabanki, in the interest of justice."

3. At the very outset, learned counsel for the applicant submitted that at this stage, he is confining his prayer to seek the benefit of the judgment(s) passed by the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of Satender Kumar Antil vs. Central Bureau of Investigation and another, (2022) 10 S.C.R. 351 : (2022) 10 SCC 51; Musheer Alam vs. State of Uttar Pradesh and Another, 2025 SCC OnLine SC 116 and the judgment passed by this Court in the case of Smt. Bacchi Devi Versus State of U.P. and another, 2025 SCC OnLine All 5286 for which liberty may be given to the applicant and liberty may also 2 A482 No. 9981 of 2025 be given to the applicant to approach this Court again at appropriate stage for seeking appropriate relief.

4. The relevant paragraph of Smt. Bacchi Devi (Supra), referred, is as under:- "38. Based on the foregoing deliberations, and to give effect to the constitutional guarantees under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, this Court, in exercise of the powers vested in it under Article 227 of the Constitution and Section 528 of the BNSS, and to secure the ends of justice as well as to implement the directions issued in Satender Kumar Antil (supra), hereby directs as follows: (i) All District Judges shall ensure that, in cases where the chargesheet has been filed without arrest-whether because custodial interrogation was not effected during investigation by Investigating Officer, or the accused had secured anticipatory bail/protective orders under Article 226 of the Constitution or Section 528 of the BNSS and duly cooperated during investigation-the trial court shall not remand the accused to judicial custody upon appearance pursuant to summons, nor insist upon filing of regular or anticipatory bail applications. The accused shall be permitted to appear and furnish a personal bond at the first instance, in terms of Musheer Alam (supra) and Satender Kumar Antil (supra)5. The requirement of surety under Section 91 BNSS may be considered subsequently at the court's discretion to ensure appearance of the accused. (ii). At the stage of proceedings under Sections 88, 170, 204, and 209 Cr. P.C. (corresponding sections 91, 190, 227 and 232 of BNSS), the trial court-whether presided over by a District Judge, Additional District and Sessions Judge, or Magistrate-shall inform the accused of his right to furnish a personal bond at the first instance, and may require surety subsequently, if necessary27. (iii). Immediately after appearance of accused in response to summons, the court shall comply with Sections 230 and 231 of BNSS, 2023, committing the case to the court of session when exclusively triable by it, and proceed to the next trial stage without unnecessary delay. (iv). For the sake of clarity, when the trial court encounters such anticipatory bail or protective orders under Article 226 or Section 528 BNSS specifying protection till the filing of the charge-sheet, or direct that “no coercive action”/“stay on arrest shall operate until filing of charge sheet”, these protections shall be deemed to continue until the conclusion of trial, in line with Gurbaksh Singh Sibbia (supra), Sushila Aggarwal (supra), Sidharth (supra), Satender Kumar Antil (supra), and Musheer Alam (supra) unless supported by with cogent reasons, making out an exceptional case. This direction aligns with the consistent position adopted by the Supreme Court, beginning with Gurbaksh Singh Sibbia (supra), affirmed in Sushila Aggarwal (supra), clarified in Sidharth 3 A482 No. 9981 of 2025 (supra), and reiterated in Satender Kumar Antil (supra) and Musheer Alam (supra). A reference may be invited to paragraphs 43, 44, 46 and 47 of the order dated 11.7.2022; paragraph no. 3 of order dated 7.10.2021; paragraph no. 6 of order dated 16.12.2021; paragraph no. 4, 5 and 6 of order dated 21.3.2023; paragraph nos. 7(ii) of order dated 2.5.2023; paragraph nos. 229 to 239 of the order dated 13.2.2024; paragraph nos. 79 to 85 of the order dated 6.8.2024 passed in Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI, [all the orders mentioned hereinabove have been passed by Supreme Court in SLP (Crl.) No. 5191 of 2021]. (v). The Joint Director (Prosecution) in each district shall maintain detailed records of all such cases where trial courts remanded accused persons to custody, despite charge-sheets being filed without prior arrest, contrary to the Supreme Court directives in Arnesh Kumar (supra), Sidharth (supra), Satender Kumar Antil (supra), and observation made in Musheer Alam (supra). (vi). All Jail Superintendents shall maintain corresponding records of such cases. The record shall be maintained in a register documenting cases along with a remand order where an accused has been sent to jail by the trial court despite not being arrested during the investigation and the judicial remand is contrary to the judgments mentioned in preceding paragraph. (vii). The Additional Director General of Police (Prosecution), Directorate of Prosecution, Lucknow, shall compile an annual, centralised record of all such instances, based on data from Joint Directors (Prosecution), and Jail Superintendents. This record shall be reviewed periodically, submitted to higher authorities, including the Registrar General of the High Court. It shall be used to assess the conduct of Judicial and Prosecuting Officers. The Directorate of Prosecution shall promote compliance with binding directions, protect the constitutional right to liberty, and preserve the integrity of the criminal justice system. The objective is to establish an additional layer of oversight at the zonal and regional levels, complementing the centralised data maintained by the Directorate of Prosecution. (viii). The Director, JTRI, Lucknow, shall ensure sustained training programmes for judicial officers to secure compliance with this order. (ix). The Secretary, District Legal Services Authority, in coordination with District Court Bar Associations, shall conduct regular legal awareness camps to educate and sensitise advocates on these directions. (x). District Judges shall submit monthly reports to the High Court containing: (a) the number of cases in which judicial remand was ordered despite no prior arrest; (b) feedback on judicial training and compliance with these directions; and (c) details of legal awareness camps conducted. A reference is invited to paragraph 11(d) of the order dated 21.1.2025 passed in Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI22. 4 A482 No. 9981 of 2025 (xi). It is noted that Sidharth (supra) was delivered on 16.08.2021 and reinforced in Satender Kumar Antil (supra) by order dated 11.7.2022. Despite this, violations persisted by the learned trial courts, leading the Supreme Court to direct skill enhancement training for a District Judge nearly a year after Satender Kumar Antil and two years after Sidharth. The Supreme Court also expressed concern that judges in other districts of Uttar Pradesh remained unaware or indifferent to these directions, therefore, it can safely be observed that the longstanding practice of District Judges merely endorsing ‘seen’ on the cover page of circulation letters for judgments has lost its efficacy. Therefore, the learned District Judges shall endorse: “Read, understood, and discussed with fellow judges of the district”, and, after deliberating on this judgment with their fellow judges, submit a report to this effect to the Registrar General of this Court immediately upon receipt of a copy of this order."

5. Learned AGA has no objection to the prayer made by learned counsel for the applicant.

6. Keeping in view the aforesaid, the present application is disposed of with liberty as prayed for. December 9, 2025 Arun/- (Saurabh Lavania,J.) ARUN KUMAR GANGWAR High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, Lucknow Bench

1. Heard learned counsel for the applicant and learned AGA for the State as well as perused the record.

2. The present application has been filed by the applicant for the following main relief(s):- "Wherefore, it is most respectfully prayed that this Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to quash the impugned order dated 29.05.2025 passed by Additional Sessions Judge/Special Judge Gangster Act, Court No.8, Barabanki, in S.C. No. 1906/2024, (State Vs. Suraj Kumar and others) in Case Crime No. 0001/2024, U/S-3(1) of U.P. Gangster and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, Police Station-Satrikh, District-Barabanki, as contained in Annexure No.1 to this petition. And it is further prayed that this Hon'ble Court may kindly be pleased to quash the entire proceeding of S.C. No. 1906/2024, (State Vs. Suraj Kumar and others) in Case Crime No. 0001/2024, U/S-3(1) of U.P. Gangster and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, Police Station- Satrikh, District-Barabanki, pending in the court of Additional Sessions Judge/Special Judge Gangster Act, Court No.8, Barabanki, in the interest of justice."

3. At the very outset, learned counsel for the applicant submitted that at this stage, he is confining his prayer to seek the benefit of the judgment(s) passed by the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of Satender Kumar Antil vs. Central Bureau of Investigation and another, (2022) 10 S.C.R. 351 : (2022) 10 SCC 51; Musheer Alam vs. State of Uttar Pradesh and Another, 2025 SCC OnLine SC 116 and the judgment passed by this Court in the case of Smt. Bacchi Devi Versus State of U.P. and another, 2025 SCC OnLine All 5286 for which liberty may be given to the applicant and liberty may also 2 A482 No. 9981 of 2025 be given to the applicant to approach this Court again at appropriate stage for seeking appropriate relief.

4. The relevant paragraph of Smt. Bacchi Devi (Supra), referred, is as under:- "38. Based on the foregoing deliberations, and to give effect to the constitutional guarantees under Article 21 of the Constitution of India, this Court, in exercise of the powers vested in it under Article 227 of the Constitution and Section 528 of the BNSS, and to secure the ends of justice as well as to implement the directions issued in Satender Kumar Antil (supra), hereby directs as follows: (i) All District Judges shall ensure that, in cases where the chargesheet has been filed without arrest-whether because custodial interrogation was not effected during investigation by Investigating Officer, or the accused had secured anticipatory bail/protective orders under Article 226 of the Constitution or Section 528 of the BNSS and duly cooperated during investigation-the trial court shall not remand the accused to judicial custody upon appearance pursuant to summons, nor insist upon filing of regular or anticipatory bail applications. The accused shall be permitted to appear and furnish a personal bond at the first instance, in terms of Musheer Alam (supra) and Satender Kumar Antil (supra)5. The requirement of surety under Section 91 BNSS may be considered subsequently at the court's discretion to ensure appearance of the accused. (ii). At the stage of proceedings under Sections 88, 170, 204, and 209 Cr. P.C. (corresponding sections 91, 190, 227 and 232 of BNSS), the trial court-whether presided over by a District Judge, Additional District and Sessions Judge, or Magistrate-shall inform the accused of his right to furnish a personal bond at the first instance, and may require surety subsequently, if necessary27. (iii). Immediately after appearance of accused in response to summons, the court shall comply with Sections 230 and 231 of BNSS, 2023, committing the case to the court of session when exclusively triable by it, and proceed to the next trial stage without unnecessary delay. (iv). For the sake of clarity, when the trial court encounters such anticipatory bail or protective orders under Article 226 or Section 528 BNSS specifying protection till the filing of the charge-sheet, or direct that “no coercive action”/“stay on arrest shall operate until filing of charge sheet”, these protections shall be deemed to continue until the conclusion of trial, in line with Gurbaksh Singh Sibbia (supra), Sushila Aggarwal (supra), Sidharth (supra), Satender Kumar Antil (supra), and Musheer Alam (supra) unless supported by with cogent reasons, making out an exceptional case. This direction aligns with the consistent position adopted by the Supreme Court, beginning with Gurbaksh Singh Sibbia (supra), affirmed in Sushila Aggarwal (supra), clarified in Sidharth 3 A482 No. 9981 of 2025 (supra), and reiterated in Satender Kumar Antil (supra) and Musheer Alam (supra). A reference may be invited to paragraphs 43, 44, 46 and 47 of the order dated 11.7.2022; paragraph no. 3 of order dated 7.10.2021; paragraph no. 6 of order dated 16.12.2021; paragraph no. 4, 5 and 6 of order dated 21.3.2023; paragraph nos. 7(ii) of order dated 2.5.2023; paragraph nos. 229 to 239 of the order dated 13.2.2024; paragraph nos. 79 to 85 of the order dated 6.8.2024 passed in Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI, [all the orders mentioned hereinabove have been passed by Supreme Court in SLP (Crl.) No. 5191 of 2021]. (v). The Joint Director (Prosecution) in each district shall maintain detailed records of all such cases where trial courts remanded accused persons to custody, despite charge-sheets being filed without prior arrest, contrary to the Supreme Court directives in Arnesh Kumar (supra), Sidharth (supra), Satender Kumar Antil (supra), and observation made in Musheer Alam (supra). (vi). All Jail Superintendents shall maintain corresponding records of such cases. The record shall be maintained in a register documenting cases along with a remand order where an accused has been sent to jail by the trial court despite not being arrested during the investigation and the judicial remand is contrary to the judgments mentioned in preceding paragraph. (vii). The Additional Director General of Police (Prosecution), Directorate of Prosecution, Lucknow, shall compile an annual, centralised record of all such instances, based on data from Joint Directors (Prosecution), and Jail Superintendents. This record shall be reviewed periodically, submitted to higher authorities, including the Registrar General of the High Court. It shall be used to assess the conduct of Judicial and Prosecuting Officers. The Directorate of Prosecution shall promote compliance with binding directions, protect the constitutional right to liberty, and preserve the integrity of the criminal justice system. The objective is to establish an additional layer of oversight at the zonal and regional levels, complementing the centralised data maintained by the Directorate of Prosecution. (viii). The Director, JTRI, Lucknow, shall ensure sustained training programmes for judicial officers to secure compliance with this order. (ix). The Secretary, District Legal Services Authority, in coordination with District Court Bar Associations, shall conduct regular legal awareness camps to educate and sensitise advocates on these directions. (x). District Judges shall submit monthly reports to the High Court containing: (a) the number of cases in which judicial remand was ordered despite no prior arrest; (b) feedback on judicial training and compliance with these directions; and (c) details of legal awareness camps conducted. A reference is invited to paragraph 11(d) of the order dated 21.1.2025 passed in Satender Kumar Antil v. CBI22. 4 A482 No. 9981 of 2025 (xi). It is noted that Sidharth (supra) was delivered on 16.08.2021 and reinforced in Satender Kumar Antil (supra) by order dated 11.7.2022. Despite this, violations persisted by the learned trial courts, leading the Supreme Court to direct skill enhancement training for a District Judge nearly a year after Satender Kumar Antil and two years after Sidharth. The Supreme Court also expressed concern that judges in other districts of Uttar Pradesh remained unaware or indifferent to these directions, therefore, it can safely be observed that the longstanding practice of District Judges merely endorsing ‘seen’ on the cover page of circulation letters for judgments has lost its efficacy. Therefore, the learned District Judges shall endorse: “Read, understood, and discussed with fellow judges of the district”, and, after deliberating on this judgment with their fellow judges, submit a report to this effect to the Registrar General of this Court immediately upon receipt of a copy of this order."

5. Learned AGA has no objection to the prayer made by learned counsel for the applicant.

6. Keeping in view the aforesaid, the present application is disposed of with liberty as prayed for. December 9, 2025 Arun/- (Saurabh Lavania,J.) ARUN KUMAR GANGWAR High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, Lucknow Bench