JUDGMENT :

VIVEK SINGH THAKUR, J.

1. Instant petition has been preferred seeking anticipatory bail under Section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (in short ‘Cr.P.C.’) in favour of petitioner in case FIR Crime No.RC0962019A0002 of 2019 registered in SPE Branch CBI, ACB, Shimla, H.P., under Sections 120-B alongwith Sections 409, 420, 467, 468 and 471 of the Indian Penal Code (in short ‘IPC’) and Sections 13(2) and 13(1)(c) & (d) of Prevention of Corruption Act.

2. Petitioner had joined Allahabad Bank as a Probationer Officer. Thereafter he was promoted as a Manager and as of now he is serving as a Senior Manager in Allahabad Bank (now known as Indian Bank) Hamirpur. In present case, opening of accounts of ASA Marketing Solutions and large number of students, during posting of the petitioner in Branches of Allahabad Bank at Panchkula, Solan and Chandigarh is the fact for considering him as an accused in scholarship scam.

3. Petitioner is apprehending his arrest, during ongoing investigation by CBI being carried out with respect to as many as 26 Institutions, regarding scholarship scams because during his posting at Solan, Chandigarh and Panchkula w.e.f. July 2011 to June 2018, main accused Rajdeep Singh, Krishan Kumar and Babita Rajta had opened accounts of their Partnership Firm ASA Marketing Solutions and also of large number of students and the petitioner is the officer, who is being considered an instrumental to the ill-design of main accused to swallow huge amount of scholarship for which students were entitled.

4. Status report stands filed, wherein it is stated that petitioner remained posted from July 2011 to July- August 2014 in Panchkula Branch, from July-August 2014 to May 2015 in Chandigarh Branch, June 2015 to May-June 2017 in Solan Branch and June 2017 to June 2018 in Panchkula Branch of Allahabad Bank, now known as Indian Bank and during his posting at Panchkula he had opened bank account of Partnership Firm ASA Marketing Solutions and 28 bank accounts of students out of total 135 bank accounts of students in the said Branch claimed to be students by aforesaid three partners (main accused) in their so called institutions whereas, according to investigation carried out till date, all these institutions were fake having no sanction, approval or affiliation of any competent authority as required under law to run such institutions. As per Investigating Agency signatures of petitioner on account opening forms not only by Smt. Sapna posted as a Clerk in Allahabad Bank but have also been identified by the petitioner himself.

5. It is also case of the prosecution that during his posting at Solan, out of 186 account numbers of students opened in that Branch, 116 accounts were opened by the petitioner and he had also transferred scholarship amount, received in accounts of students at Panchkula to the accounts of ASA Marketing Solutions opened at Solan Branch by him on the basis of a letter of Rajdeep Singh and Krishan Kumar without any authorization from the students but on the basis of so called authority letters alleged to have been issued by the students which was without any date, with no amount mention and without any Branch name of the Bank with which these accounts were opened. According to prosecution, on transfer of petitioner from Panchkula to Solan, main accused Rajdeep Singh and Krishan Kumar with the help of petitioner had opened a new account in the same bank, i.e. in Solan Branch. It is also reported that during his posting at Chandigarh, petitioner had opened account of four students in that Branch also, and ASA Marketing Solutions was already having account in that Branch. According to prosecution, accounts of the students at Panchkula, Solan and Chandigarh were opened without consent and knowledge of the students, in their absence, but on the basis of documents supplied by Rajdeep Singh and Krishan Kum