SupremeToday Landscape Ad
Back
Next
Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation
Listen Audio Icon Pause Audio Icon
judgment-img

1997 Supreme(Guj) 493

Gujarat High Court
Judgename :H.R.Shelat
BHIKHABHAI UDESINH DARBAR - Appellant
Versus
STATE - Respondent
MISC.CRI.APPLN. 5526 of 1997
Decided On : 10/06/1997

Advocates Appeared: D.N.Patel, V.D.PARGHI

Headnote:(a) Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 - Secs. 473(3), 438, 439 & 445 - Bail - Grant of - Imposition of condition - Magistrate directing payment of Rs. 5,000/- to the victim - Not permissible - Freakish condition not justifiable.

       Whether the Court while releasing the accused on bail can impose a condition directing the accused to deposit non- refundable amount in the Court so as to straightway disburse the same thereafter to the victim, is the moot question raised in this application. No doubt the court having regards to the facts & circumstances of the case can impose necessary just & efficacious conditions assessing the situation, but the powers of the court are unfetterred. The accused cannot be subjected to any condition or extravagant or irrelevant conditions the court at its fancy wants to impose. The conditions contemplated in Secs. 473 (3), 438, 439. or 445, Cri. P. Code, 1973 whichever is applicable to the case, or the conditions contemplated by other provisions of applicable special law governing the field alone can be imposed. The conditions must therefore have a reference to those necessary in the interest of justice, or securing accuseds presence at the trial, and his receiving judicial verdict, or preventing him from fleeing or watching & checking his activities injurious the interest of prosecution, or the requirements of an uninterrupted investigation, or inhibitting the accused from inducing or intimidating the witnesses so as to dissuade them from disclosing the facts before police & court or restricting accuseds movements in a particular area or locality, or maintenance of law & order, or larger interest, or accuseds safety or safety of others, or prevention of recurrence of any crime of incident a subject matter of investigation and the like. To subject the accused to any other condition beyond the jurisdiction or power of freakish condition will be repugnant to law. The court must therefore be extremely chary and should not transgress its jurisdiction or power and pass the order contrary to law; or the order causing injury to accused, or any party, or operating as an engine of oppression. Further the conditions imposed must not be harsh, onerous or excessive so as to frustrate the very object of bail, or indirectly deny the bail, or protection of law.

       [Para 5 ]

       (b) Bail - Grant of - Condition imposed should be reasonable and permissible under Law.

       I cannot subscribe to the impugned condition incorporated in the order granting bail, as the same is in reference to neither of the above stated categories of the conditions falling within the ambits of Sec. 473 (3), CrPC, 1973 the cynosure. By such conditions, the bail is rendered nugatory and indirectly denied. Further the condition is of a penal in nature. The penalty is imposed when charge is proved and not prior to it. The lower Court has without trial assumed the accused guilty and inflicted penalty as if he was (may be keeping in mind Sec. 357 CrPC) passing the final order of sentence, which is not permissible in law. Oblivious of the bounds of law, it seems becoming overzealous and obsessed with particular ideology or philoshopy he may have inculcated, the learned Judge transgressing his jurisdiction passed the impulsive order capriciously which is certainly contrary to law, so far as it relates to impugned condition. Consequently, the freakish condition incorporated in the order operating as an engine of opperession is required to be deleted.

       [Para 6]

H. R. SHELAT, J.

( 1 ) ). Rule. Mr. D. N. Patel, learned A. P. P. waives the service of Rule. At the request of both, the application is heard today.

( 2 ) ). The applicant prays for necessary modification in the order of bail granted by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Kheda at Nadiad in Misc. Criminal application No. 625 of 1997.

( 3 ) ). It is not necessary to set out the details of the case, yet in short, the facts leading the applicant to file this application be delineated. On being arrested during the course of investigation after the F. I. R. of the offences under Secs. 363 and 366 i. P. Code came to be filed before the police station at Petlad, the applicant filed misc. Criminal Application No. 625 of 1997 before the Sessions Court, Kheda at nadiad for bail. It was transferred to the Court of the Additional Sessions Judge, kheda at Nadiad for hearing and disposal in accordance with law. The learned Judge of that Court hearing the parties allowed the application, and released the applicant on bail on his executing a personal bond of Rs. 5,000. 00 and also imposed certain conditions. Under one of the conditions the petitioner is directed to deposit nonrefundable amount of Rs. 5,000. 00 in the Court of the Judicial Magistrate (F. C.) at petlad. On the amount being deposited, the same is ordered to be paid to the victim kokilaben. The applicant-accused could see that such condition imposed being opposed to law, was unjust and oppressive. He has, therefore, preferred the present application for deletion of that condition.

( 4 ) ). The applicants learned Advocate has contended that the learned Judge passed the order under mistaken assumption of power, or fancy for a particular ideology. Disembarrassment in this case is, therefore, absolutely necessary. The condition imposed being contrary to law is required to be deleted. On behalf of the State the learned A. P. P. agreeing with the applicants learned Advocate has submitted that the impugned condition being ill-based reflecting fallacious consideration is not tenable in law, and mistaken or sweetwilled conceptions are required to be disembroiled.

( 5 ) ). Whether the Court while releasing the accused on bail can impose a condition directing the accused to deposit non-refundable amount in the Court so as to straightway disburse the same thereafter to the victim, is the moot question raised in this application. No doubt the Court having regards to the facts and circumstances of the case can impose necessary, just and efficacious conditions assessing the situation, but the powers of the Court are not unfetterred. The accused cannot be subjected to any condition, or extravagant or irrelevant conditions the Court at its fancy wants to impose. The conditions contemplated in S. 437 (3) 438, 439 or 445, cri. P. Code, 1973 whichever is applicable to the case, or the conditions contemplated by other provisions of applicable special law governing the field alone can be imposed. The conditions must, therefore, have a reference to those necessary in the interest of justice, or securing accuseds presence at the trial, and his receiving judicial verdict, or preventing him from fleeing or watching and checking his activities injurious to the interest of prosecution, or the requirements of an uninterrupted investigation, or inhibitting the accused from inducing or intimidating the witnesses so as to dissuade them from disclosing the facts before police and Court or restricting accuseds movements in a particular area or locality, or maintenance of law and order, or larger interest, or accuseds safety or safety of others, or prevention of recurrence of any crime or of incident a subject-matter of investigation and the like. To subject the accused to any other conditions beyond the jurisdiction or power or freakish condition will be repugnant to law. The Court must, therefore, be extremely chary and should not transgress its jurisdiction or power and pass the order contrary to law; or the









Click Here to Read the rest of this document

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
Judicial Analysis

SupremeToday

SupremeToday Portrait Ad
supreme today icon
logo-black

An indispensable Tool for Legal Professionals, Endorsed by Various High Court and Judicial Officers

Please visit our Training & Support
Center or Contact Us for assistance

qr

Scan Me!

India’s Legal research and Law Firm App, Download now!

For Daily Legal Updates, Join us on :

whatsapp-icon Back to top