IMPORTANT POINTSWhile considering an application for bail, all the relevant factors have to be weighed by the Court including the gravity of the offence, the evidence and material which prima facie show the involvement of applicant for bail in the offence alleged, the extent of involvement of the applicant for bail, in the offence alleged, possibility of the applicant accused absconding or otherwise defeating or delaying the course of justice, reasonable apprehension of witnesses being threatened or influenced or of evidence being tempered with, and danger to the safety of the victim (if alive), the complainant, their relatives, friends or other witnesses.

JUDGMENT :

Indira Banerjee, J.

Leave granted.

2. This Appeal filed by the State of Kerala is against an order dated 21st December 2020 passed by the High Court of Kerala granting bail to the Respondent, accused of a heinous and shocking murder of a lady doctor aged about 30 years.

3. It is the case of the Prosecution that on 28th September 2020 at about 3.30 p.m., the Respondent Accused stabbed the victim, with a knife, inside a multispeciality dental clinic, run by the victim at Kuttanellur. The victim succumbed to her injuries at Jubilee Mission Hospital on 4th October, 2020.

4. As per the case of the Prosecution, the victim met the Respondent Accused after her divorce from her erstwhile husband. The victim and the Respondent Accused became close and started living together from 2018 onwards. The victim became pregnant, but the Respondent Accused forced her to undergo an abortion, by threatening her.

5. The deceased victim had, as per the case of the Prosecution, started the Multispeciality Dental Clinic, with financial support from her father. The Respondent Accused misappropriated money from the clinic and also harassed the victim, both physically and mentally. In the circumstances, the victim was constrained to separate from Respondent Accused and start living at her own house. As the Respondent Accused continued to threaten the victim, the victim had, along with her father, filed a complaint with the City Police Commissioner, Thrissur on 26th September, 2020.

6. The victim was called to the Ollur Police Station for a settlement and thereafter to her dental clinic on 28th September 2020 at 3.30. p.m. The Respondent Accused stabbed the victim with a knife on the right side of the stomach, in the presence of her father, at the dental clinic.

7. An FIR was lodged at the Ollur Police Station, Thrissur on 28th September 2020, under Sections 341, 324 and 307 of the Indian Penal code (IPC), pursuant to which Crime No. 1777/2020 of Ollur Police Station was started. However, after the death of the victim, Section 302 was added and an Inclusion Report to that effect was filed in the Jurisdictional Court. The crime as stated above has been registered under Sections 341, 324, 201, 212, 307 and 302 of the IPC. The Respondent Accused was arrested on 6th October, 2020.

8. A Bail application filed by the Respondent Accused in the Sessions Court was dismissed by an order dated 9th December, 2020 with the following findings:-

“12. In view of the settled position as laid down by the Apex court, while considering an application for bail, the court has to exercise the discretion in a judicious manner with care and caution, though at this stage elaborate examination of evidence and detailed reasoning touching the merit of the case is not required. But there is need to indicate in the order the reasons for the prima facie conclusion why bail is not granted. Prime facie satisfaction of the court in support of the charge alone is sufficient for the court to arrive at a conclusion as to whether the petitioner is entitled to get an order of bail. From the materials on record as revealed from the case diary, it could be seen that the petitioner had reached the clinic with a knife and after the culmination of the discussion, he had attacked the deceased and inflicted very serious stab injury and caused damages to her internal vital organs. After committing the crime, the petitioner had absconded and he could be apprehended only on 06.10.2020 on receiving secret information by the investigation agency regarding the arrival of the petitioner at Poonkunnam. After committing the crime, the petitioner had abandoned his car and got himself absconded and kept himself away from the vicinity of the police with the aid of his brother, worker and a friend. There is merit in the objection raised by the police regarding the possibility of the petitioner absconding from appearing before court.

13. The next objection raised by the prosecution is that since the deceased is a r