Can an application under section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure code (‘the code’, for Short) for anticipatory bail be permitted to be withdrawn?

2. Accordingly to prosecution petitioner’s husband (A9) was the President of a Bank and he is an active politician also. In Pursuance of criminal conspiracy hatched among him and various accused including petitioner (A21) an amount of Rs. 75 lakhs (which is more than the permissible limit of loan which could be sanctioned by the Bank) was advanced to petitioner’s firm, on the strength of mortgage by deposit of title. Thereafter, the title deeds which were deposited in Bank were clandestinely taken out by the accused from the Bank and properties covered by the deeds were sold. The President, Secretary, other office bearers of the Bank and loanees criminally conspired to commit offences of misappropriation, forgery, falsification of accounts etc., and caused huge loss to the bank by misappropriation of its funds. Various other amounts were also granted in the same manner to various other persons also, as loan. The offences alleged are under sections 120 B. 406, 420,465,468, 477A IPC.

.3. This is the second application for anticipatory bail. The earlier application for anticipatory bail (B.A. No. 7291/2007) was dismissed as withdrawn, as per order dated 12.2007 of another bench of this court. The said order reads as follows:

.“After discussions at the Bar, the learned counsel for the petitioner only prays that the petitioner may be permitted to withdraw this petition without any fetter on the rights of the petitioner to surrender before the learned Magistrate and seek regular bail. Request is accepted. This bail application is accordingly dismissed as withdrawn”.

.4. At the time of hearing of this petition also, the same request was made by petitioner. She requested that she may be permitted to withdraw this petition. The request may appear to be an

.innocent and innocuous one. But, can this court allow petitioner to withdraw an anticipatory bail application? This is the short question to be considered in this case.

5. I shall first, consider, the background in which this petition was filed. The crime was registered about two years back, on 11.2006. For the past two years, petitioner did not co-operate with the investigation. She did not make herself available for interrogation. Instead, in 2007, after about one year of registration of the crime, she filed an anticipatory bail application, as B.A. No. 7291/2007. Later she requested to permit her to withdraw the petition, under the pretext that she wished to surrender before trial court. This court acted upon those submissions and dismissed the petition, as withdrawn.

6. But, she did not surrender before the Court. She did not seek bail under section 437 of the code. She successfully evaded arrest and all other lawful procedure for about on year after dismissal of earlier anticipatory bail application. Almost two years have lapsed now, after registration of the crime. But, petitioner filed another application for anticipatory bail and when it reached a stage where no further adjournment would be allowed, she has came up with a seemingly innocent request to allow her to withdraw this petition.

7. I ascertained petitioner’s reasons for withdrawal. I also enquired why she did not surrender in court or before police. Learned counsel for petitioner had no satisfactory answer to give. It appears that petitioner did not intend to obtain any relief from the court on merit, while filing both the petitions. Even now, she only wants to remain untouched by any legal machinery. Without surrendering to law, she just wants to evade a lawful arrest. She is also reluctant to make herself available for a lawful interrogation by police. She does not want to surrender before court also and seek bail under section 437 of the code. All these are evident from her conduct, in repeatedly filing anticipatory bail applications and then, making requ