The main legal point established in the judgment is the importance of a thorough investigation, consideration of the accused's criminal antecedents, and the applicability of bail in heinous crimes.

JUDGMENT

VIBHA KANKANWADI, J. - Admit.

2. Present Appeal has been filed under Sec. 14A (2) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act (for short "the Atrocities Act") by original accused No.4 to challenge the order of rejection of his bail under Sec. 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure in Criminal Bail Application No.234 of 2022 by learned Special Judge under the Atrocities Act / Additional Sessions Judge, Shrirampur, District-Ahmednagar on 13/10/2022.

3. Present respondent No.2 is the original informant who has filed First Information Report (for short "FIR") vide Crime No. 733 of 2022 with Shrirampur City Police Station, Shrirampur, District-Ahmednagar on 30/8/2022 alleging that the present appellant - original accused No.4 and other three accused persons have committed offence punishable under Ss. 376(2)(n), (l), 376(d) of the Indian Penal Code and Ss. 3(1)(w)(i)(ii) and 3(2)(V-A) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Act, 2015. In the FIR, the informant has contended that she is the member of scheduled caste. However, it will not be out of place to mention here that when the charge-sheet has been filed, at that time it was found that informant is not the member of scheduled caste and therefore, the charge-sheet has been filed only for the offences under the Indian Penal Code and that too, the charge-sheet is presented before the learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, Shrirampur. The charge-sheet came to be filed on 10/11/2022 i.e. after the rejection of the bail application by the learned Special Judge.

4. Heard learned Advocate Mr. Jahagirdar appearing for the appellant, Mrs. Diggikar, learned APP appearing for respondent No.1. -State and Mr. Deoda, learned Advocate appointed for Respondent No.2.

5. It has been vehemently submitted on behalf of the appellant that perusal of the FIR would show that the prosecutrix - informant is 40 years old lady and in the FIR itself she has stated that she has adopted Christianity and thereafter married with the person from Muslim community. Therefore, according to the appellant, the offence ought not to have been registered for any of the offences under the Atrocities Act. Further in the FIR it is stated that about a year prior to the FIR, as son of the informant was beaten by someone and she was crying, accused Nos.1 and 2 met her, tried to offer support and asked for sexual favour. It is then stated that accused Nos.1 and 2 had committed rape on her in presence of each other. The informant is handicapped and she says that therefore she could not resist. The FIR further says that thereafter accused Nos. 1 and 2 made phone call to accused No.3, who came there and asked for the sexual favour contending that when she has allowed accused Nos. 1 and 2 to do the sexual act with her, why he should not do the act with her and then he has done the said act. She has then stated that accused No.1 called the present appellant and then the appellant was pushed by accused No.1 on the person of the prosecutrix and thereafter he had committed rape on her. She has then stated that accused Nos.1 and 2 came to her house 5 to 6 days thereafter and for about a month later they were committing rape on her. During that period the appellant once and accused No.3 had committed rape on her twice. With these allegations the informant has arrayed the appellant as accused No.4. Thus, there is apparent delay of about a year in lodging the report. At no point of time the informant has stated that the present appellant had the knowledge that the informant belongs to scheduled caste.

6. Learned Advocate for the appellant has further stated that now the investigation is over and charge-sheet is also filed and therefore, further physical custody of the appellant is not required. It was also pointed out that the statement of the informant has been recorded under Sec. 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure before the learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, Shrirampur on 3/10