The petitioner herein is the first accused in C.P No.44/2014 of the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court II, Mavelikkara. The offences involved in the crime are under Sections 452, 324, 326, 109, 120B and 307 of the Indian Penal Code. It is submitted that the actual act of offence alleged in the crime was committed by accused Nos.4 to 10. But the police arraigned the petitioner herein and two others as accused on the allegation that conspiracy for such act of offence was made them. The alleged incident happened on 18.6.2011. The petitioner has produced copy of his passport entries showing that on the said date he was abroad. His grievance is that he has not received any summons in the proceeding, but warrant of arrest happened to be issued against him from the committal court.
2. On the apprehension of arrest in execution of the said warrant, he seeks direction for bail, under Section 482 of Crl.M.C No.6256 of 2014 2 the Code of Criminal Procedure. Of course, the relief as sought by the petitioner cannot be granted by this Court under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. When warrant of arrest is pending, the accused will have to surrender before the learned Magistrate and seek regular bail under Section 437 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. However, a direction can be made to consider the application for bail on the date of surrender itself. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the case of the petitioner is genuine that he was not in fact in India, on the date of the alleged incident. Of course, on a perusal of the passport entries, I find that on the date of the alleged incident the petitioner herein was abroad. The prosecution will have to satisfactorily explain how the petitioner herein was arraigned as accused when the definite allegations regarding the alleged act of offence, are against the accused Nos.4 to 10. His further grievance is that he has not received any summons in this proceeding because he was all throughout abroad. These aspects will have to be considered by the learned Magistrate when taking decision on the application for bail. I do not think that the learned Magistrate will mechanically remand him to judicial custody without considering the very important aspects Crl.M.C No.6256 of 2014 3 discussed above. The case does not involve any offence punishable with death or imprisonment for life.
In the result, this Criminal Miscellaneous Case is closed with direction to the court below that in case application for bail is filed by the petitioner herein, on surrender in C.P No.44/2014, the same shall be judiciously considered and decided on the date of surrender itself, however with notice to the other side. He is granted time for two weeks to surrender before the trial court and to make application for bail, during which period execution of warrant of arrest will stand suspended.
P.UBAID JUDGE ab