The court established that bail can be granted based on the absence of injuries, the filing of a charge-sheet, and the duration of custody, reinforcing the principle that pre-trial detention should not be punitive.

Headnote:
BAIL - CRIMINAL PROCEDURE - The court granted bail to the petitioners based on the absence of injuries caused, the filing of the charge-sheet, the duration of custody, and the precedent of granting bail to co-accused. The court emphasized the need for a fair trial and the principle of liberty, leading to the decision to allow bail while ensuring compliance with conditions set forth.
Fact of the Case:

The petitioners filed a bail application under Section 439 Cr.P.C. after being in custody for four months in connection with serious charges including attempted murder and extortion. They argued that no injuries were caused, and other co-accused had been granted bail.
Finding of the Court:

The court noted the filing of the charge-sheet, the lack of injuries, the duration of custody, and the granting of bail to co-accused. It concluded that the bail application should be accepted without commenting on the merits of the case.
Issues: Whether the petitioners should be granted bail considering the circumstances of the case, including the nature of the charges, duration of custody, and the status of co-accused.
Ratio Decidendi: The court applied the principles of bail, emphasizing the presumption of innocence, the right to a fair trial, and the importance of not detaining individuals unnecessarily when the trial may take a long time.
Result: The bail application was allowed, and the petitioners were ordered to be released on bail upon fulfilling specified conditions.

JUDGMENT

Devendra Kachhawaha, J. - The present bail application has been filed under Section 439 Cr.P.C. on behalf of the petitioners who are in custody in connection with F.I.R. No.294/2021, Police Station Jawahar Nagar, District Sriganganagar, registered for the offences punishable under Sections 307, 384, 387, 336 & 120-B of the IPC, Section 67 of the IT Act and Sections 5, 27, 3 and 25 of the Arms Act.

2. Heard learned counsel for the petitioners and learned Public Prosecutor. Perused the material available on record.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioners stated that charge-sheet has been filed; petitioners are behind the bars for last four months; no injury has been caused to anyone; benefit of bail has already been granted to other co-accused persons; and trial will take time. With these submissions, learned counsel for the petitioners prayed that the benefit of bail may be granted to the petitioners.

4. Per contra, learned Public Prosecutor has opposed the bail application and stated that twelve other cases have been registered against the accused-petitioner, Sagar @ Sansar @ Joli and five other cases have been registered against the accused-petitioner, Rahul Soni @ Sukha @ Nepali.

5. Having regard to the facts and circumstances of the case and particularly looking to the facts that charge-sheet has been filed; no injury has been caused to anyone; benefit of bail has been granted by this Court to co-accused persons namely, Nishant Bajaj vide order dated 06.10.2021 (Bail Application No.11900/2021), Om Prakash @ Bittu vide order dated 25.08.2021 (Bail Application No.11251/2021), Sonu Jain @ Naveen @ Punjabi vide order dated 25.08.2021 (Bail Application No.10335/2021), Ajay Arora @ Bhalu vide order dated 25.08.2021 (Bail Application No.10120/2021) and by co-ordinate Bench of this Court to co-accused, Khemchand @ Ayush Goyal vide order dated 26.07.2021 (Bail Application No.9258/2021); accused-petitioners are behind the bars for last four months; and trial will take sufficiently long time, therefore, without expressing any opinion on the merits/demerits of the case, this Court is of the opinion that the bail application filed by the petitioners deserves to be accepted.

6. Consequently, the bail application is allowed. It is ordered that the accused-petitioners - (1) Sagar @ Sansar @ Joli S/o Shri Rajendra, (2) Rahul Soni @ Sukha @ Nepali S/o Arjun Soni and (3) Vishal Kashyap @ Bunty S/o Shri Madan Gopal, all arrested in connection with F.I.R. No.294/2021, Police Station Jawahar Nagar, District Sriganganagar, shall be released on bail, if not wanted in any other case, provided each of them furnishes a personal bond of Rs.50,000/- with two sureties of Rs.25,000/- each (one shall be a local) to the satisfaction of the learned trial court with the stipulation to appear before that Court on all dates of hearing and as and when called upon to do so.

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