Court No. - 67
Case :- CRIMINAL APPEAL No. - 3039 of 2021 Appellant :- Arun And Another Respondent :- State of U.P. and Another Counsel for Appellant :- Avinash Pandey Counsel for Respondent :- G.A.
Hon'ble Rahul Chaturvedi,J.
Rejoinder affidavit filed by learned counsel for the appellant to the counter affidavit filed on behalf of State is taken on record.
From the order-sheet it is clear that despite service of notice upon opposite party no.2, neither he has chosen to engage any counsel nor has filed any counter affidavit as yet, as such, taking the aid and help of learned A.G.A., the Court proposed to decide this appeal on merits.
Heard Shri Avinash Pandey, learned counsel for the appellants and Shri Satendra Nath Tiwari, learned A.G.A for the State and perused the record.
This criminal appeal under Section 14 A (2) of Scheduled Castes & Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (in short "S.C./S.T. Act") has been filed on behalf of appellants namely, Arun and Ankit against the bail rejection order dated 25.6.2021 passed by learned Additional Sessions Judge/Special Judge, SC/ST (PA) Act, Shamli in Bail Application No.724 of 2021 in Case Crime no.160 of 2021, under Sections 147, 148, 149, 323, 324, 325, 504, 506 I.P.C. and Section 3(1)(r(s) of SC/ST (P.A.) Act, Police Station-Jhinjhana, District-Shamli.
It has been submitted by learned counsel for the appellants that the present F.I.R. was lodged by one Sanjay on 31.3.2021 u/s 147, 148, 149, 323, 324, 504, 506 I.P.C. and Section 3(2)(v) of SC/ST Act against as many as 13 named accused persons including the appellants. During the course of investigation Section 325 I.P.C. was also added among array of the sections. From the text of the F.I.R. it is clear that all named accused persons were armed with lathi, danda and sariya who indiscriminately assaulted upon the recipient of the injured and making Vipin, Vikas and Sagar injured. I have perused the injury reports of injured persons. There is no dispute that there was indiscriminately wielding of lathi, danda and sariya by all the accused persons and the injuries sustained by injured Vikas are grievous in nature, but it is not clear that who is the author of these grievous injuries. The entire mob of 13 persons were attributed a general role of hurling abuses by caste name and that too in this chorus no one can pinpoint the actual offenders. There is no recovery of any incriminating material from the possession or at the pointing out of the appellants. The appellants are languishing in jail since 02.04.2021 having no criminal antecedents.
Learned A.G.A has opposed the prayer for bail but could not dispute the aforesaid facts.
The submission made by learned counsel for the appellants, prima facie, is quite appealing and convincing for the purpose of bail only.
Keeping in view the nature of the offence, evidence, complicity of the accused, submissions of the learned counsel for the parties and without expressing any opinion on merits of the case, I am of the view that the appellants have made out a case for bail.
Let the appellants-Arun and Ankit be released on bail in the aforesaid case crime number on their furnishing a personal bond and two reliable sureties each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the court concerned with the following conditions which are being imposed in the interest of justice:-
(i) THE APPELLANTS WOULD FULLY COOPERATE IN THE CONCLUSION OF TRIAL WITHIN ONE YEAR AND ANY TEMPERING OR WILLING TACTICS ON THE PART OF THE APPELLANTS TO DELAY THE TRIAL WOULD WARRANT THE AUTOMATIC CANCELLATION OF BAIL.
(ii) THE APPELLANTS SHALL FILE AN UNDERTAKING TO THE EFFECT THAT THEY SHALL NOT SEEK ANY ADJOURNMENT ON THE DATE FIXED FOR EVIDENCE WHEN THE WITNESSES ARE PRESENT IN COURT. IN CASE OF DEFAULT OF THIS CONDITION, IT SHALL BE OPEN FOR THE TRIAL COURT TO TREAT IT AS ABUSE OF LIBERTY OF BAIL AND PASS ORDERS IN ACCORDANCE WITH LAW.
(iii) THE APPELLANTS SHALL REMAIN PRESENT BEFORE THE TRIAL COURT ON EACH DATE FIXED, EITHER PERSONALLY OR THROUGH THEIR COUNSEL. IN CASE OF THEIR ABSENCE, WITHOUT SUFFICIENT CAUSE, THE TRIAL COURT MAY PROCEED AGAINST THEM UNDER SECTION 229-A IPC.
(iv) IN CASE, THE APPELLANTS MISUSE THE LIBERTY OF BAIL DURING TRIAL AND IN ORDER TO SECURE THEIR PRESENCE PROCLAMATION UNDER SECTION 82 CR.P.C., MAY BE ISSUED AND IF APPELLANTS FAIL TO APPEAR BEFORE THE COURT ON THE DATE FIXED IN SUCH PROCLAMATION, THEN, THE TRIAL COURT SHALL INITIATE PROCEEDINGS AGAINST THEM, IN ACCORDANCE WITH LAW, UNDER SECTION 174-A IPC.
(v) THE APPELLANTS SHALL REMAIN PRESENT, IN PERSON, BEFORE THE TRIAL COURT ON DATES FIXED FOR (1) OPENING OF THE CASE, (2) FRAMING OF CHARGE AND (3) RECORDING OF STATEMENT UNDER SECTION 313 CR.P.C. IF IN THE OPINION OF THE TRIAL COURT ABSENCE OF THE APPELLANTS IS DELIBERATE OR WITHOUT SUFFICIENT CAUSE, THEN IT SHALL BE OPEN FOR THE TRIAL COURT TO TREAT SUCH DEFAULT AS ABUSE OF LIBERTY OF BAIL AND PROCEED AGAINST THEM IN ACCORDANCE WITH LAW.
However, it is made clear that any wilful violation of above conditions by the appellants, shall have serious repercussion on their bail so granted by this court.
Accordingly, the appeal succeeds and the same stands allowed. Impugned order dated 25.6.2021 passed by learned Additional Sessions Judge/Special Judge, SC/ST (PA) Act, Shamli, is hereby quashed.
Order Date :- 22.9.2021 M. Kumar