IMPORTANT POINT
Bail can be granted in cases where applicant has no previous criminal history.

JUDGMENT

Chandra Dhari Singh, J.—The present application under Section 438 of Cr.P.C. has been filed by the accused applicant seeking bail in anticipation of his imminent arrest in Case Crime No.448 of 2020 under section 67-A, 66-E of the Information Technology Act 2008 and Section 507 IPC, P.S. Thakurganj, District Lucknow.

2. The instant anticipatory bail application has been moved before this Court directly instead of approaching first to Sessions Court, Lucknow because on pandemic situation prevailing due to Covid 19, the work of Sessions Court Lucknow was badly hampered due to several deaths of the employees working in the judgeship.

3. The prosecution story, in brief is that the complainant have virtual acquaintance since past two years with the applicant on Facebook who is working in Mozambique Africa and she had Nikha through Facebook Call on 14.03.2019 which is recognized through the Shia Islamic Laws. When the applicant came back to India, she contacted the applicant and he denied to talk and blocked her mobile number and also from the Facebook. In January 2020, the applicant once again contacted the complainant and when the complainant requested him to take opinion of the Islamic Scholar to follow and abide the conditions of Nikah, the applicant threatened the complainant with dire consequences and blackmail her under the threat.

4. Learned counsel for the applicant has submitted that the applicant has never met the complainant and the entire prosecution story is false and fake. The impugned first information report has been lodged with the purpose to blackmail the applicant and squeeze the money from him as the applicant is working abroad and having a lot of money. It has also been submitted that the applicant has wrongly been prosecuted in the case though the offences are bailable. It is further submitted that the applicant never met the complainant and no nikah or marriage took place. It is submitted that the applicant has connected with the complainant through the PUBG alleging her name ‘Anaya’ and thereafter she has changed her identity as ‘Husna Abidi’ and thereafter she has given her name as ‘Iram Abbas’. The complainant has depicted her identity with different names on the social media which creates a suspicion in the mind of the applicant and thus, the applicant blocked the complainant. It is also submitted that if the entire allegation believed to be true, as stated in the first information report, does not fulfill any ingredients of the offence punishable under the I.T. Act and section 507 IPC, therefore, no case is made out against the applicant. The applicant has never committed any crime and he has no criminal history and he is a simple law abiding citizen and gone Mozambique to earn money for his livelihood. Learned counsel submits that the impugned first information report is creating hindrance in the applicant’s life which contains false and fabricated facts and as such the applicant is liable to be granted anticipatory bail in the present case.

5. Per contra, learned AGA has opposed the submissions made by the learned counsel for the applicant and submitted that there are serious allegations against the applicant and since the applicant is working abroad, there is great chance that he will abscond and will not cooperate in the trial proceedings. It has also been submitted that during the investigation the allegations under section 67-A has not been found proved therefore, the same has been dropped. However, the allegations under sections 420, 500, 507 IPC and section 66-E are found against the applicant and the charge-sheet has been filed in the court concerned on 19.05.2019. It has further been submitted that the allegations are found proved against the applicant and therefore, looking the seriousness of the allegations/crime, which have been committed by the applicant, there is no forceful ground for granting anticipatory bail to the applicant under Section 438 Cr.P.C.

6. Heard learned cou