Court No. - 72
Case :- CRIMINAL MISC. BAIL APPLICATION No. - 57168 of 2019 Applicant :- Subhash Opposite Party :- State of U.P. and Another Counsel for Applicant :- Anand Kumar Tiwari Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A.
Hon'ble Siddharth,J.
Heard learned counsel for the applicant, Sri Raghubir Singh, learned counsel for the informant, learned AGA for the State and perused the material placed on record.
The instant bail application has been filed on behalf of the applicant, Subhash, with a prayer to release him on bail in Case Crime No. 408 of 2019, under Sections 363, 366, 376-D, 342 IPC and 3/4 POCSO Act, Police Station Malpura, District- Agra, during pendency of trial.
Submission is that age of the victim, as per medical report, is 17 years. However, given margin of two years on higher side, she can be considered to be major. It has been submitted that victim herself had admitted that she had affair with the applicant. She knows the applicant for last four years. He is neighbour of the victim. In her statement under Section 164 Cr.P.C., victim has implicated the applicant in this case under the pressure of her family members. She stated that she was held captive in godown and police came there and rescued her from his gang. Recovery memo has been brought on record. It is clear that police has recovered the victim from Pathauli Nahar Chauraha, on the information of informer. It has been submitted that statement of the victim is doubtful. The applicant alleges false implication. The applicant has criminal history of one case, which has been explained in paragraph No. 23 of the affidavit in support of the bail application and he is languishing in jail since 27.7.2019. In case, the applicant is released on bail, he will not misuse the liberty of bail.
Per contra learned counsel for the informant has opposed the prayer for bail of the applicant and submitted that age of the victim, as per high school certificate, is 16 years. She is minor. Therefore, he is not entitled to be enlarged on bail.
Learned AGA has also supported the arguments advanced by learned counsel for the informant.
After hearing the rival contentions of learned counsel for the parties, this Court finds that there is difference of age in the medical report and school certificate of the victim. The Apex Court in the case of Suhani & another vs. State of U.P. & others, 2018 LawSuit (SC) 1364 has accepted that medical report is more reliable as compared to the educational certificate. Even otherwise the question of genuineness of the high school certificate and the medical certificate shall be examined by the trial court during the trial.
In larger mandate of the Article 21 of the Constitution of India and without expressing any opinion on the merits of the case, let the applicant involved in the aforesaid crime be released on bail on his furnishing a personal bond and two sureties each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the court concerned with the following conditions that :-
1. The applicant shall not tamper with the prosecution evidence by intimidating/ pressurizing the witnesses, during the investigation or trial.
2. The applicant shall cooperate in the trial sincerely without seeking any adjournment.
3. The applicant shall not indulge in any criminal activity or commission of any crime after being released on bail.
In case, of breach of any of the above conditions, it shall be a ground for cancellation of bail.
Identity, status and residence proof of the applicant and sureties be verified by the court concerned before the bonds are accepted.
Order Date :- 19.12.2019 Ruchi Agrahari