IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 8TH DAY OF MARCH, 2019 BEFORE THE HON’BLE MR.JUSTICE B.A. PATIL CRIMINAL PETITION NO.1596/2019 BETWEEN:
1. Manjunatha S/o Shivanna Aged about 50 years R/o C. Nandihalli Village At post, Chelur Hobli Gubbi Taluk Tumakuru-572 117.
2. Gurubasavaiah S/o Shivanna Aged about 65 years Nandihalli Village (as per FIR) At post, Chelur Hobli Gubbi Taluk Tumakuru-572 117.
Permanent Address is R/o Maruti nagar 1st Cross Railway Station Road KEB opposite Gubbi Town Tumakuru-572 216.
3. Shivamma W/o. Shivanna Aged about 87 years R/o C. Nandihalli Village At post, Chelur Hobli Gubbi Taluk Tumakuru-572 117. ...Petitioners (By Sri. B.V. Pinto, Advocate) AND:
1. State of Karnataka By Chelur P.S.
By State Public Prosecutor High Court Bangalore-560 001.
2. Varadharaju S/o Venkateshaiah Aged about 23 years R/o C. Nandihalli Village At post, Chelur Hobli Gubbi Taluk Tumakuru-572 117.
3. Anuradha D/o Venkateshaiah Aged about 31 years R/o C. Nandihalli Village At post, Chelur Hobli Gubbi Taluk Tumakuru-572 117. ... Respondents (By Sri. M. Divakar Maddur, HCGP) This Criminal Petition is filed under Section 438 of Cr.P.C praying to enlarge the petitioner on bail in the event of their arrest in CR.No.19/2019 of Chelur Police Station, Tumakuru for the offence P/U/S.504,506 r/w 34 of IPC and U/s. 3(1) (r), 3(1) (s) of SC/ST (POA) Act.
This Criminal Petition coming on for Orders, this day, the Court made the following:
O R D E R The present petition has been filed under Section 438 of Cr.P.C. to release the petitioners on anticipatory bail in Crime No. 19/2019 of Chelur Police Station for the offences punishable under Sections 504,506 read with Section 34 of IPC and also under Section 3(1) (r) and 3(1)(s) of SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act.
2. The notice was issued to complainant through the said police station and the complainant remained absent.
3. I have heard the learned counsel for the petitioners-accused Nos.1 to 3 and the learned HCGP for the State.
4. The genesis of the complaint is that petitioners-accused Nos. 1 to 3 were plucking the bund in the land of complainant with JCB bearing registration No.KA-13-P-1795. At that time, the complainant came and questioned the petitioners- accused Nos. 1 to 3 that there is civil dispute in respect of the land and not to remove the ridge from the land. The petitioners abused the complainant with filthy language by taking name of the caste as madiga and vala madiga and the said abuse was done with an intention to grab the said property by paying money to the brother of the respondent Nos. 2 and 3.
5. It is the submission of the learned counsel for the petitioners that civil dispute is pending between the petitioners and the complainant. He further submits that the records produced clearly goes to show that the complainant is not belonging to SC/ST caste as per the SC/ST list that has been published by the State Government. He further submits that the school records and other records clearly goes to show that the complainant is belonging to Sri Yallamma Vakkalu Makkalu and it is not coming within the list of SC/ST and as such, he submits that the provisions of Section 18(a) of SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act will not be attracted.
6. He further submits that accused No.3 is aged about 87 years and the distance between the residence of petitioner-accused No.3 and the place of incident is more than 18 kms. It is highly impossible for the accused No.3 to move from her place. On these grounds, he prays to allow the petition and to release the petitioners on bail.
7. Per contra, the learned HCGP has vehemently argued that there is a bar under the law to release on anticipatory bail if person abuse by taking the name of the caste. Therefore, the petitioners are not entitled to be released on anticipatory bail and the present petition is liable to be dismissed. By taking advantage of the civil dispute, the petitioners have abused the complainant and they have committed the alleged offence. Hence, on these grounds he prays for dismissal of the petition.
8. I have carefully and cautiously gone through the submission of the learned counsel appearing for the parties and perused the records.
9. On close reading of the contents of the complaint, complaint itself goes to show that all the three accused persons abused the complainant by taking the name of the caste. That itself creates a doubt about the alleged incident. It is the submission made by the learned counsel for the petitioners-accused Nos. 1 to 3 that accused No.3 is aged about 87 years and she was not in a position to move from her place which is more than 18 kms to the place of incident. That also creates doubt in the case of the complainant. It is well settled principle of the law by the Hon’ble Apex Court in the case of Dr. Subhash Kashinath Mahajan vs. State of Maharashtra & Another reported in (2018) 6 SCC 454, that there is no absolute bar against grant of anticipatory bail if no prima facie case is made out or where on judicial scrutiny complaint is found to be prima facie malafide. On close reading of the complaint, Section 18 of Act is not applicable to the present facts of the case on hand.
10. Under the said facts and circumstances, this Court is not finding any impediment under Section 438 of Cr.P.C to release the petitioners-accused Nos. 1 to 3 on anticipatory bail by imposing strict conditions for release of the petitioners, which will meet the ends of the justice.
11. In the light of the above, the petition is allowed. The petitioners-accused Nos.1 to 3 are ordered to be released on anticipatory bail in the event of their arrest in Crime No.19/2019 of Chelur Police Station for the offences punishable under Sections 504, 506 read with Section 34 of IPC and also under Section 3(1) (r) and 3(1)(s) of SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act subject to the following conditions:
1. Petitioner/accused Nos. 1 to 3 shall execute a personal bond for a sum of Rs.1,00,000/-(Rupees one Lakh Only) with two sureties for the likesum to the satisfaction of the Investigating Officer.
2. Petitioner/accused Nos. 1 to 3 shall surrender before the Investigating Agency within 15 days from today.
3. Petitioner/accused Nos. 1 to 3 shall not tamper with the prosecution evidence directly or indirectly.
4. Petitioner/accused Nos. 1 to 3 shall not leave the jurisdiction of the Court without prior permission.
Sd/- JUDGE SSD