Anil Kumar @ Anil Kumar Yadav @ Anil Yadav vs State of Bihar

Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation

2023 Supreme(Pat) 344

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
(FULL BENCH)
ASHUTOSH KUMAR, HARISH KUMAR and CHANDRA SHEKHAR JHA, JJ.
Criminal Misc. Nos. 19124, 20616, 21866, 38303 of 2014; 55537, 64211 of 2018 44395, 57376, 59044, 59804, 60033, 61405, 63408, 76448 of 2019; 2321, 3114, 6457, 6461, 8673, 9470 of 2020; 2611, 2634, 2657, 10398, 11113, 11326, 12482, 12671, 13651, 15208, 15621, 17720, 18587, 19628, 21643, 22755, 24784, 25495, 38758, 43186, 45124, 45846, 47556, 48337, 49793, 50204, 50381, 51145, 51463, 51465, 52168, 52775, 53299, 54206, 54667, 56315, 57615, 57654, 58503, 58924, 59713, 59851, 60208, 60849, 60883, 60902, 61417, 61491, 62116, 63277, 65988, 66004, 67297, 67302, 68341, 69148, 69551, 69988, 70357, 70775, 71101 of 2021; 98, 106, 125, 537, 539, 877, 2187, 2521, 2976, 3010, 3196, 4256, 4828, 4902, 4934, 5340 of 2022.
(12.7.2023)
Anil Kumar @ Anil Kumar Yadav @ Anil Yadav (in 19124)
Zahid Eqbal & Ors. (in 20616)
Ajeet Kumar Bhagat (in 21866)
Bir Bahadur Rai & Ors. (in 38303)
Rajendra Prasad @ Rajendra Kumar and Ors. (in 55537)
Ashok Baitha & Anr. (in 64211)
Hamid Raza & Anr. (in 44395)
Shamim Ahmad Shamim Khan @ Gappu Tiger (in 57376)
Sajan Choudhary (in 59044)
Md. Imran Ansari @ Imran Ansari (in 59804)
Sumit Kumar (in 60033)
Manoj Kumar (in 61405)
Vinod Kumar (in 63408)
Jata Shanker Kumar (in 76448)
Sandeep Kumar (in 2321)
Ashok Kumar Sharma @ Ashok Kumar (in 3114)
Jitendra Choudhary (in 6457)
Md. Jaseem @ Lal Babu @ Md. Jasim (in 6461)
Ripu Ranjan Mishra @ Bablu Mishra @ Bablu Kumar Mishra (in 8673)
Raj Kumar Yadav @ Raju Kumar @ Raju (in 9470)
Santosh Kumar Pandey @ Santosh Pandey (in 2611)
Md. Imtiyaz @ Imtiyaj @ Md. Imtiyaj Alam (in 2634)
Rohit Kumar (in 2657)
Md. Tahir Hussain @ Tahir Hussain (in 10398)
Harun Rashid (in 11113)
Munna Miyan (in 11326)
Surender Prasad @ Surender Singh (in 12482)
Md. Anwar (in 12671)
Nandlal Raut @ Nandlala Raut @ Nandlala Pd. Bin @ Nandlal Pd. Bint (In 13651)
Md. Azad (in 15208)
Azad Ali (in 15621)
Ranjeet Kumar @ Ranjeet Ram (in 17720)
Ajit Kumar Charan (in 18587)
Raushan Kumar (in 19628)
Md. Faiyaz (in 21643)
Rajeshwar Roy (in 22755)
Ajay Narayan Jha (in 24784)
Pankaj Kumar (in 25495)
Tarkeshwar Tiwari @ Chhote Tiwari (in 38758)
Ramanand Yadav (in 43186)
Rajeev Ranjan Kumar (in 45124)
Uday Kumar Sah (in 45846)
Vinay Kumar @ Vinay Mahto (in 47556)
Ganesh Kumar Ram (in 48337)
Pramod Thakur (in 49793)
Shashi Ranjan Rakesh @ Sashi Ranjan Rakesh (in 50204)
Ashok Kumar (in 50381)
Ram Padarath Singh (in 51145)
Mohan Dubey (in 51463)
Rakesh Prasad (in 51465)
Vishnu Paswan (in 52168)
Rajesh Kumar (in 52775)
Anil Pandit @ Anil Padit (in 53299)
Md Javed (in 54206)
Shalik Paswan @ Shaligram Paswan (in 54667)
Shailendra Kumar @ Shalil (in 56315)
Sanjay Dubey (in 57615)
Saurav Kumar @ Saurabh Kumar (in 57654)
Manoj Kumar @ Manoj Sao (in 58503)
Ashok Sahani (in 58924)
Ram Kishun Mahto @ Lakkar Mahto & Anr. (in 59713)
Umesh Prasad Yadav @ Umesh Yadav & Ors. (in 59851)
Shanti Devi (in 60208)
Dilip Chawla (in 60849)
Umesh Mistry (in 60883)
Ashok Rai @ Ashok Ray (in 60902)
Md. Asad Rahman @ Md. Arshad Rahman @ Md. Arshad @ Asad Rahman (In 61417)
Jai Jai Ram Singh @ Jai Ram Singh & Ors. (in 61491)
Md. Wasim Akram (in 62116)
Niraj Shahi @ Niraj Kumar Shahi (in 63277)
Navin Prakash Gupta (in 65988)
Kailash Tanti @ Kailu Tanti (in 66004)
Md. Awes (in 67297)
Md. Mojib & Ors. (in 67302)
Rahul Paswan (in 68341)
Ranjan Rai @ Kariman Rai (in 69148)
Guddu Mali (in 69551)
Sushil Mahto (in 69988)
Jitendra Kumar @ Jitendra Singh (in 70357)
Birendra Ram @ Birendra Kumar (in 70775)
Ratnesh Kumar (in 71101)
Kanhaiya Gupta (in 98)
Rajiv Kumar @ Rajiv Kumar Sah (in 106)
Khesal Ahmad (in 125)
Mishrilal Sah & Ors. (in 537)
Chandra Kishor Sharma @ Chand Kishor Sharma (in 539)
Dhananjay Kumar (in 877)
Farid Khan @ Farid Shekh (in 2187)
Dewendra Singh @ Devendra Singh (in 2521)
Chitranjan Kumar @ Chitranjan Mahto (in 2976)
Md. Rakib Uddin (in 3010)
Satish Kumar @ Satish Kumar Singh (in 3196)
Shesh Nath Sah & Ors. (in 4256)
Ram Ekbal Singh & Anr. (in 4828)
Jainath Rawat & Ors. (in 4902)
Manoj Kumar (in 4934)
Md. Maskur @ Maskur Alam & Ors. (in 5340)
vs.
State of Bihar & Ors. .... Opp. Parties
(in all)

Advocates:
Appearance :
(In Cr. Misc. No. 19124 Of 2014)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Suman Kumar Jha.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Md. Matloob Rab, APP.
(In Cr. Misc. No. 20616 of 2014)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Sanjeev Ranjan.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Parmeshwar Mehta, APP.
(In Cr. Misc. No. 21866 of 2014)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Dhananjaya Nath Tiwari.
For the Opp. Party : Mr.Ram Chandra Singh, APP.
(In Cr. Misc. No. 38303 of 2014)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Chandan.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. S. Ehteshamuddin, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 55537 of 2018)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Arvind Kumar Sharma.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Sri Kumar Virendra Narayan, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 64211 of 2018)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Anil Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Sri Kalyan Shankar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 44395 of 2019)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Dilip Kumar Tondon.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Ram Priya Sharan Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 57376 of 2019)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Dilip Kumar Tondon.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Ashok Kumar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 59044 of 2019)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Sanjay Kumar Sharma.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Manoj Kumar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 59804 of 2019)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Brij Nandad Prasad.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Chandra Sen Prasad Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 60033 of 2019)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Md. Mushtaque Alam.
For the Opp. Party : Ms. Dr. Indiwar Kumari, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 61405 of 2019)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Uday Narayan Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Narendra Kumar Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 63408 of 2019)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Sanjay Mandal.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Ansar Ul Haque, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 76448 of 2019)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Sandip Kumar Gautam.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Nand Kumar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 2321 of 2020)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Ritesh Kumar Narain Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Ms. Sangeeta Sharma, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 3114 of 2020)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Rajeev Ranjan No.Ii.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Rajendra Prasad Nat, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 6457 of 2020)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Dharmesh Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Nawal Kishore Prasad, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 6461 of 2020)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Mohammad Sufyan.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Md. Iftekhar Mahmood, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 8673 of 2020)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Shakil Ahmad Khan.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Md. Nazir Ansari, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 9470 of 2020)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Indu Bhushan.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Md. Anbzarul Haque Sahara, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 2611 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Vijay Shankar Shrivastava.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 2634 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Nafisuzzoha.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 2657 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Alok Kumar Alok.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 10398 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Kumod Kumar Shrivastaw.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 11113 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Kumod Kumar Shrivastaw.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 11326 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Aditya Nath Jha.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Mithlesh Kumar Khare, APP
(In Cri. Mis. No. 12482 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Ashok Kumar Kashyap.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Md. Fahimuddin, APP
(In Cri. Mis. No. 12671 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Pushpendra Kumar Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 13651 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Krishna Kumar Yadav.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 15208 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Shashi Shekhar Sharma.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 15621 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Ramchandra Sahni.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 17720 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Abhay Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Kumar Ranjit Ranjan, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 18587 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Prashant Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 19628 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Rana Ishwar Chandra.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Rana Randhir Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 21643 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Md. Najmul Hodda.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 22755 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Mukund Mohan Jha.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 24784 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Chandra Shekhar Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr.A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 25495 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Piyush Anand.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G
(In Cri. Mis. No. 38758 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Pawan Kumar Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 43186 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Bimlesh Kumar Pandey.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G
(In Cri. Mis. No. 45124 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: M/s Ajay Kumar Thakur, Vaishnavi Singh, Ritwik Thakur, Shivam.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Bharat Bhushan, APP.
For the O.P. No. 2 : Mr. Sudhir Kumar Bijuria.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 45846 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Udai Shankar Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Zainul Abedin, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 47556 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Ratanakar Jha.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Kumar Ranjit Ranjan, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 48337 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Anil Prasad Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Pranav Kumar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 49793 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: M/s Amit Narayan. Jeetendra Narayan.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Akshay Lal Pandit, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 50204 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Ms. Rina Sinha.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Nawal Kishore Prasad, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 50381 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Rajeev Nayan.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Pawan Kumar Chaurasia, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 51145 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Ms. Vagisha Pragya Vacaknavi.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G
(In Cri. Mis. No. 51463 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Sunil Kumar No.III.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Bhanu Pratap Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 51465 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Anil Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Jharkhandi Upadhyay, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 52168 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Kundan Kumar Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Brajendra Nath Pandey, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 52775 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Pawan Kumar Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Ms. Meena Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 53299 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Kundan Rathore.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Vinod Shanker Modi, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 54206 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. S. Jamil Akhtar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Sanjay Kumar Tiwary, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 54667 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Pramod Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Ms. Madhuri Lata, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 56315 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Ms. Priyanka Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Ajit Kumar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 57615 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Milind Kumar Mishra.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Amitesh Kumar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 57654 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Md Fazle Karim.
For the Opp. Party : Ms. Renu Kumari, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 58503 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Vibhakar Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Uday Chand Prasad, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 58924 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Madhurendra Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Amit Kumar Rakesh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 59713 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Binay Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Ms. Indu Kumari Srivastava, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 59851 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Ranjeet Tiwary.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Bharat Lal, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 60208 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Bauye Jee Jha (B.J. Jha).
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Jitendra Kumar Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 60849 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Rajan Ghoshrave.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Murli Dhar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 60883 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Umesh Prasad.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Nagendra Prasad, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 60902 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Karandeep Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Kanhaiya Kishore (App100)
(In Cri. Mis. No. 61417 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Awadhesh Kumar Mishra.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Lalan Kumar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 61491 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Uma Shankar Prasad Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Ajay Kumar Jha, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 62116 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Awadhesh Prasad Sinha.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Ganesh Prasad Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 63277 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Ms. Prakritita Sharma.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Ram Sumiran Rai, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 65988 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Saroj Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Ram Anurag Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 66004 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Amrendra Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Akhileshwar Dayal, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 67297 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Nafisuzzoha.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G
(In Cri. Mis. No. 67302 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Dhananjay Kumar Pandey.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Bal Mukund Prasad Sinha, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 68341 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Naresh Chandra Verma.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Harendra Prasad, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 69148 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Alok Kumar Alok.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Lakshmi Kant Sharma, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 69551 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Brajesh Kumar Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Suresh Prasad Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 69988 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Alok Kumar Alok.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Rajesh Kumar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 70357 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Vinod Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Ms. Renu Kumari, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 70775 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Mukesh Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Ms. Anita Kumari, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 71101 of 2021)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Anil Kumar Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Satya Nand Shukla, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 98 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Sunil Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Md. Shakir Ahmad, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 106 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Binod Kumar Sinha.
For the Opp. Party : Ms. Pronoti Singh, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 125 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Sunil Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Syed Mojibur Rahman, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 537 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Devendra Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 539 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Gopal Kumar Jha.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Khurshid Anwar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 877 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Prithivi Raj Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Madhura Nand Jha, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 2187 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Tribhuwan Narayan.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Md. Aslam Ansari, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 2521 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Bhaskar Shankar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Akhileshwar Dayal, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 2976 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Ravi Prakash.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 3010 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Anil Kumar Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Nirmal Kumar Sinha, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 3196 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Dhramveer.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Ram Sumiran Rai, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 4256 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Rajesh Kumar Mishra.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Nawal Kishore Prasad, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 4828 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Ayush Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Ms. Pushpa Sinha.1, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 4902 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Nawal Kishore Singh.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Madan Kumar, APP.
(In Cri. Mis. No. 4934 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Praveen Kumar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. A.G
(In Cri. Mis. No. 5340 of 2022)
For the Petitioner: Mr. Md. Ziaul Quamar.
For the Opp. Party : Mr. Umesh Lal Verma, APP

Headnote:
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 438 – Maintainability of anticipatory bail petition at instance of accused in a complaint case – Application under Section 438 of Cr.P.C. is maintainable on behalf of a person who has only been summoned in a complaint case as apprehension of being arrested in a non-bailable offence continues – A Special Court, exercising powers of a Magistrate so far as taking of cognizance is concerned, is still a Sessions Court by a deeming fiction of law and is entitled to entertain application under Section 438 of Cr.P.C. – After rejection of anticipatory bail application by Sessions Court, accused has right to approach High Court for grant of anticipatory bail. (Paras 121 and 133)
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 438 – Anticipatory bail – Requirement of making out "special case" for exercise of power to grant anticipatory bail would virtually reduce salutary power conferred by Section 438 to a dead letter – Applicant has to make out a case for grant of anticipatory bail but one cannot go further and say that he must make out a special case – There is no reason to suspect anything volatile or incendiary in Section 438, which needs to be handled with greatest care and caution imaginable – A wise exercise of judicial power inevitably takes care of evil consequences which are likely to flow out of its intemperate use. (Para 30)
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 438 – Anticipatory bail – A person applying for bail under Section 438 of Cr.P.C. must have reasons to believe that he may be arrested for a non-bailable offence – Preventing an accused summoned in connection with non-bailable offence from applying under Section 438 of Cr.P.C. would lead to reading into the Section a condition which, in ultimate analysis, would restrict its scope. (Paras 46 and 48)
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 87 – Summons and warrant – Unless accused is charged with commission of offence of a heinous crime and it is feared that he is likely to tamper or destroy evidence or is likely to evade process of law, issuance of non-bailable warrant should be avoided – Purpose of issuance of summons or warrant for that matter, is only to procure attendance of accused as criminal proceeding cannot be conducted in absence of accused – Summons and warrants are but only different modes of achieving same purpose – Difference between summons and warrant is more of substance than of kind and these are only alternate modes of process to compel appearance. (Paras 63 and 64)
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Section 438 – Grant of anticipatory bail – Object of Section 438 is to prevent undue harassment of accused persons by pre-trial arrest and detention – Gravity of offence is an important factor to be taken into consideration while granting anticipatory bail, so also the need for custodial interrogation – Fact of cognizance having been taken or filing of a charge-sheet, cannot by itself be construed as a prohibition against grant of anticipatory bail – Court of Sessions, High Court and Supreme Court have necessary powers vested in them to grant anticipatory bail in non-bailable cases under Section 438 of Cr.P.C., even when cognizance is taken or a charge-sheet is filed, provided facts of case require Courts to do so. (Para 85)
Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 – Sections 4 and 5 – Saving – Unless there is any negative prescription in the Code, provisions contained therein shall not affect any special or local law or any special jurisdiction of power conferred or any special form of procedure prescribed by any other law for time being in force – There are certain legislations where Special Courts have been created and have been clothed with deemed status of such Courts as Court of Sessions – Special Courts, even though they are not Sessions Judges, specifically have been clothed with powers of Sessions Court. (Paras 104 and 107)

Ashutosh Kumar, J.—Heard the learned counsel for the parties.

2. A learned Single Judge of Patna High Court, while hearing three separate anticipatory bail applications, in all of which summons were issued to the petitioners in complaint cases, found that three questions needed to be referred to a Full Bench for final determination viz. (1) whether anticipatory bail petition is maintainable at the instance of an accused in a Complaint Case, wherein after inquiry, the court simply issues summons; (2) whether an application under Section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure can be entertained by a Special Court exercising the powers of Sessions Court and; (3) whether a person whose application for anticipatory bail has been rejected by the Court of Sessions has the liberty to move the High Court for the same relief?

3. For framing the aforenoted questions, the learned Single Judge referred to the Constitution Bench judgment of the Supreme Court in Gurbaksh Singh Sibbia and Others vs. State of Punjab, 1980 (2) SCC 565, which had declared that the applicant must show that he has reasons to believe that he may be arrested for a non-bailable offence. Such “reasons to believe” must be founded on reasonable grounds. Mere fear is not belief. It is not enough for the applicant to show that he has some sort of a vague apprehension that someone is going to make an accusation against him in pursuance of which he may be arrested. The belief of the applicant must be capable of being examined by the Court objectively because it is then alone that the Court can determine whether the apprehension of the applicant is genuine.

4. The learned Single Judge went on to observe that in a complaint case, a person cannot be said to have any apprehension of being arrested till cognizance is taken and if only summons are issued, such apprehensions are rendered non-existent.

5. With respect to the second question viz. whether a Special Court exercising the powers of a Sessions Court can entertain an application under Section 438 of the Cr.P.C., the learned Single Judge referred to Kamleshwar Singh vs. Dharamdeo Singh, AIR 1957 Patna 375 and Rajesh Choudhary vs. State of Rajasthan, 1987 CriLJournal 411, in which it was held that the legislature has invested special powers on the High Court and on the Court of Session for exercising jurisdiction under Section 438 of the Cr.P.C. On examining the question from other angles also, the learned Single Judge observed that the position is clear that expression “Court of Session” occurring in Section 438 Cr.P.C. means the Court of Session presided over by the Sessions Judge. Though the learned Single Judge noted the majority view of the Full Bench of Patna High Court in Re. Sri Ravi Nandan Sahay, the Sessions Judge Patna, 1991 2 PLJR 519 that the special judges, having the capability of being appointed as Additional Sessions Judges, have the right to entertain an application under section 438 Cr.P.C. as regards the offences for which they are the original Courts and exercise the powers conferred upon the Magistrates. But relying upon the minority view, the learned Single Judge held that the majority view needs to be re-visited. The legislature has chosen the High Court and the Court of Sessions and not “Courts of Sessions” to entertain and decide 438 applications.

6. With respect to the 3rd question viz. whether a person can move the High Court for grant of anticipatory bail in the event of his application having been rejected by the Sessions Court, though he has referred to Kusheshwar Prasad Singh vs. State of Bihar, 1985 PLJR 247, which confirms that an accused can file an application under 438 of the Cr.P.C. before the High Court after its rejection by the Sessions Court, but was of the opinion that in view of the concurrent powers given to the High Court and the Sessions Court with respect to anticipatory bails, the accused was to elect and not repeat the same grounds before a higher Court. This, according to the lea