IMPORTANT POINT
Judicial discretion in bail matters must be exercised judiciously, requiring changed circumstances for successive applications.

ORDER :

BY THE COURT

1. The instant Criminal Misc. Application for Bail Cancellation has been preferred on behalf of the petitioner Smt. Meera, who happens to be the complainant/wife of the deceased in the case pertaining to the FIR No.106/2022 registered at the Police Station Khamnor, District Rajsamand for offences under Sections 394, 302, and 120-B of the IPC. She is aggrieved of the order dated 22.12.2022 passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Nathdwara in Criminal Misc. Case No.233/2022 whereby the respondent Nos. 2 & 3, Ramniwas and Ranjeet were granted bail under Section 439 Cr.P.C. by exercising powers with impropriety and sheer misuse of the discretion vested with the learned Sessions Judge concerned.

2. Bereft of the elaborate details, the brief facts of the case would be that an FIR No.106/2022 was lodged on 15.05.2022 at the Police Station Khamnor, District Rajsamand alleging inter alia that Bhur Singh, who was the father of the first informant Raju Singh and the husband of the petitioner, was found dead on a woven bed in his house. It was further alleged that some ornaments belonging to the deceased were also found missing and the suspicion was cast to the effect that someone might have killed his father (deceased Bhur Singh) while committing robbery.

3. After the above FIR was registered, the investigation commenced, and during the investigation suspicion was cast upon the accused Ramniwas and Ranjeet. Accused Ramniwas and Ranjeet were arrested on 23.05.2022, whereas the other accused Raju Singh, who was the first informant and son of the deceased, was arrested on 22.05.2022. As per the allegations, there was cahoots between the above three.

4. Heard the counsel for the petitioner and Shree Tushar Mod, learned counsel representing the accused as well gone through the relevant material. The startling fact of the case regarding the manner of disposal of the two bail applications shook the consciousness of the Court. On 01.08.2022, Bail Application No.177/2022 came to be submitted on behalf of the accused-respondents Ramniwas and Ranjeet, and on several occasions, the hearing of the same was deferred for one or the other reason. On 15.12.2022, upon the request made by their counsel Mr. Gajendra Tak, Bail application No.177/2022 was dismissed as not pressed.

5. Interestingly, on the same day another Bail Application No.233/2022 was filed on behalf of the accused. A footnote appended on the bail application dated 15.12.2022 mentioned that “this is the first application of accused, no application is subjudice in any court”, and the same fact is contrary to the fact that it was a subsequent application and not the first one since the first bail application No.177/2022 had been dismissed as not pressed on the very same day i.e. on 15.12.2022. The successive bail application No.233/2022 under Section 439 Cr.P.C. was put to hearing and whereafter the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Nathdwara has allowed the Bail application.

6. The first Bail application was dismissed as not pressed by the counsel for the respondents and in the manner in which the subsequent Bail application was filed, on the very same day, which was allowed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge vide order impugned is against propriety and judicial discipline as the same was a subsequent bail application, not the first one.

7. It is not in dispute that the power of this Court and Court of Session under section 439 of Cr.P.C. are concurrent and Bail is a matter of discretion. It is a well-nigh-settled principle of law that discretion has to be exercised judiciously and never ever it should be arbitrary, or fanciful and the same cannot be exercised capriciously. It is also true that a successive Bail application is maintainable as the doctrine of Res judicata does not apply here. Hearing a successive bail application would not mean reviewing its earlier order or revisiting the factual situation again. However, judicial discipline, propriety, fair pla