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1998 Supreme(Guj) 23

Gujarat High Court
Judgename :R.BALIA
STATE OF GUJARAT - Appellant
Versus
DEEPAK JASWANTLAL SHETH - Respondent
MISC.CRI.APPLN. 7281 of 1997
Decided On : 01/23/1998

Advocates Appeared: K.J.SETHNA, U.A.TRIVEDI

Headnote:Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 - Sec. 438(2) - Penal Code, 1860 - Secs. 302 read with Secs. 34, 114 & 120-B - Official Secret Act, 1923 - Secs. 3 & 5 - Cancellation of bail - Respondent granted anticipatory bail - Plea of alibi found possible & plausible by Trial Court - Respondent not misuse & abuse the liberty of bail - Blanket direction for release of the accused should not be made under Sec. 438 - Improper consideration of bail - Serious infirmity - Order modified & bail granted for limited period of 7 days time given to obtain bail from regular Court. The learned Sessions Judge brands investigation as prejudicially loaded against the accused by discarding the evidence of prosecution to be unreliable and holding the case of prosecution against the present respondent as fabricated one by attempting to implicate him right from the beginning. This approach, in my opinion, on the material on record was wholly unwarranted and unravels, lack of judicious exercise of discretion by ignoring all well settled principles in considering the bail application at this stage when investigation is not completed.[Para 56]It must be realised that when the Court of Sessions or the High Court is granting anticipatory bail, it is granted at a stage when the investigation is incomplete and, therefore, it is not informed about the nature of evidence against the alleged offender. It is, therefore, necessary that such anticipatory bail orders should be of a limited duration only and ordinarily on the expiry of that duration or extended duration the Court granting anticipatory bail should leave it to the regular Court to deal with the matter on an appreciation of evidence placed before it after the investigation has made progress or the chargesheet is submitted. It should be realised that an order of anticipatory bail could even be obtained in cases of serious nature as for example murder and, therefore, it is essential that the duration of that order should be limited and ordinarily the court granting anticipatory bail should not substitute itself for the original court which is expected to deal with the offence. It is that Court which has then to consider whether, having regard to the material placed before it, is accused person is entitled to bail.

       [Para 57]In these circumstances, the order of the Sessions Court in issuing direction in respect of Respondent No. 2 under Sec. 438 deserves to be set-aside and the bail granted in pursuance of that direction be cancelled. However, keeping in view the fact that reasons for setting aside the order under Sec. 438 is that the learned Sessions Judge has improperly considered application under Sec. 438 and it is because of serious infirmity in considering the application inasmuch as the approach of learned Sessions Judge ignores the well-settled principles for considering the applications in case of non-bailable offence punishable with death and life imprisonment the order under Sec. 438 is not sustained by this Court, but at the same time, this Court being not for the present seized with the matter for grant of bail on merit and the direction under Sec. 438 has already been operated by arresting the respondent and releasing him on bail, and no untoward incident has been reported so far about abuse of his liberty by the accused-respondent, it will be only appropriate that in consonance with principles enunciated in Salauddin Abdulsamad Shaikh vs. State of Maharashtra, AIR 1996 SC 1042 and the practice of this Court, the impugned order be modified from being in the nature of unlimited operation to be circumscribed with usual limitations.[Para 59]

R. BALIA, J.

( 1 ) THIS is an application under Sec. 439 (2) of the Criminal procedure Code for cancellation of bail granted to the applicant by order dated 12- 12-1997. The circumstance in which this application has been moved may be noticed in brief. The respondent is accused of having committed offence under Sec. 302 read with Sec. 34 and Sec. 114 as well as under Sec. 120b of the Indian Penal Code being a party to criminal conspiracy to commit murder of one Ranjitsinh Parmar also known as Ranjitsinh Jam along with other accused persons which included respondents father Jaswantlal Manilal Sheth in pursuance of which said Ranjitsinh was murdered. As per the F. I. R. , some dispute existed between accused Jaswantlal m. Sheth and his son Deepak on one side and deceased Ranjitsinh Jam on the other in respect of a land situated near M. P. Shah Arts and Science College, Surendranagar and suit is pending in Civil Court. The complainant a cousin of said Ranjitsinh parmar received a telephonic call at about 6-00 or 6-30 p. m. on 6-11-1997 for ranjitsinh. On enquiry it was revealed that Jashubhai was calling and it was stated that he and his son Deepak were sitting at their bungalow and want to have discussion with Ranjit Jam in respect of land. On getting this message, deceased went to the house of Jashubhai. When the said deceased did not return for sometime, the complainant went to the house of the accused Jashubhai after about one hour. At that time, he found that accused-respondent, along with three persons named and three persons unnamed was sitting in the Varandah with the deceased. Seeing this the complainant returned. When deceased did not return upto 10-30 p. m. , the complainant again went to the residence of Jashubhai where he found Ranjitsinh lying in pool of blood in the compound of house of Jashubhai. Jashubhai Manibhai, deepakbhai Jashubhai Sheth and Dudhrajwala, a person called "gadia Gamno Jat" and two to three other persons were described as accused in the F. I. R. During the course of investigation one Siddiq Khan working as watchman at the residence of jashubhai, Manharsingh Hemubha and Harbala, both also in the employment of jashubhai, were examined. Ayubkhan @ Raju, S/o. Alamkhan, referable to "jat of gadia village" in the F. I. R. , and Iqbal Hussein S/o. Allarakha were arrested and their statements were also recorded, which were self-incriminating as actually responsible for killing as well as implicating, other accused persons including Jashubhai and deepak as involved in criminal conspiracy to kill Ranjit. On 1/2-12-1997 application under Sec. 438 was filed on behalf of Jaswantlal and Deepak. In the said application Deepak Jaswant Sheth pleaded his alibi from the scene of occurrence. His presence in Bombay as indoor patient at a nursing home from 6-11-1997 to 9-11-1997 was stated. A certificate from the doctor of the said nursing home was also presented to the Court. The application was decided on 12-12-1997. Application on behalf of Jashwantbhai M. Sheth (Jashubhai) was rejected by holding that prima facie a case under Sec. 302, may be read with Sec. 114 or Sec. 34 is made out against petitioner No. 1. About accusation under Sec. 120b the Court said "sec. 120b of the Indian Penal code which may not be considered at this stage but the case has been made out against him for murder". Application on behalf of Deepak was allowed by holding the plea of alibi was plausible and case under Sec. 302 being evenly passed, benefit must go to accused. Regarding the case of criminal conspiracy under Sec. 120b, the Court observed :"the allegation of conspiracy against him appears to be a conspiracy on the part of the complainant and the persons guiding him. "about the plea of alibi pleaded on behalf of respondent-accused Deepak, the court observed that first witness named, Manharsinh Hemubha being of the community of the deceased creates a shadow of doubt on his reliability and Saddiq badarkhan, another witness was also pl


































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