IMPORTANT POINT
The court emphasized the importance of adhering to the legal provisions related to bail and the cancellation of warrants, ensuring that the purpose and spirit of these provisions are upheld.

The petitioner [Dipender Thakur] has come up before this Court, under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, assailing the order dated 23.04.2024, [Annexure P-1] [referred to as the Impugned Order] passed by the Learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, [H.P.] in Case No 251/3 of 2022, titled as Shriram Transport Finance Company Limited versus Dipender Thakur whereby, the Learned Trial Court has dismissed the application filed by the petitioner under Section 70(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure for cancellation of the NBW’s and against denial of bail, and by sending the petitioner to judicial custody on 23.04.2024 till 06.05.2024.

2. On listing of the case today, Mr. Ashwani Kaundal, Advocate, appears and waives service of notice on behalf of the respondent.

3. With the consent of the parties and in peculiar facts of this case, the instant petition is taken up for hearing/disposal at this stage.

4. Precisely, the case set up by Mr. Vinod Kumar Gupta, learned counsel for the petitioner is that the Respondent-Complainant [Shri Ram Transport Finance Company Limited] filed a complaint under Sections 138 and 142 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, in Case No.251-3 of 2022, (Annexure P-1), before the Learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Bilaspur, (HP), on which, the cognizance was taken by the Court and the petitioner-accused [Dipender Thakur], was directed to appear and consequently, the petitioner-accused appeared and furnished the personal/surety bonds before the Learned Trial Court. Learned counsel further submits that the matter was again listed on 17.01.2024, on which date the petitioner could not appear before the Learned Trial Court, as he was suffering from fever. Due to non-appearance of the petitioner on 17.01.2024, the Learned Trial Court issued the Non Bailable Warrants [NBW’s], so as to ensure the presence of the bail petitioner for 08.05.2024.

5. Though the Learned Trial Court had issued the Non Bailable Warrants [NBW’s] on 17.01.2024 for 8.05.2024, but the petitioner-accused, appeared and surrendered before the Learned Trial Court on 23.04.2024. On surrender, the petitioner moved an application under Section 70(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, praying for cancelling the Non Bailable Warrants [NBW’s], and for granting bail, being bailable offence, but on 23.04.2024 [Annexure P-3] the Learned Trial Court dismissed the application on the ground, that the applicant/petitioner could not furnish any material proof to substantiate the reasons in support of his ailment. While passing the impugned order the petitioner-accused was sent to judicial custody till 08.05.2024, subject to the condition that he shall be produced through Video Conferencing before the Learned Trial Court on 06.05.2024, if he was not bailed out earlier.

6. Heard Mr. Vinod Kumar Gupta, Learned Counsel for the petitioner and Mr. Ashwani Kaundal, Learned Counsel for the respondent.

7. A perusal of the case records reveal that the order dated 23.04.2024, (Annexure P-3), passed by the Learned Chief judicial Magistrate, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, (HP) rejecting-disposing of the application under Section 70(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, for cancelling the Non Bailable Warrants [NBW’s] and for releasing him on bail has been assailed in these proceedings.

8. In the background of the material on record, this Court is of the considered view that the impugned order dated 23.04.2024, [Annexure P-3], passed by the Learned Trial Court suffers on two grounds; firstly, once the Non Bailable Warrants [NBW’s] were issued on 17.01.2024, directing the production of the petitioner-accused [Dipender Thakur] for 08.052024 but, the petitioner appeared on surrender before the Learned Trial Court on 23.04.2024, then in these circumstances, the only option available was to cancel the Non Bailable Warrants [NBW’s] issued by it but the refusal to cancel the Non Bailable Warrants [NBW’s], despite appearance, on surrender defeats the object and r