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2021 Supreme(Ori) 26
IN THE HIGH COURT OF ORISSA AT CUTTACK
S.K. SAHOO, J.
Akash Kumar Pathak – Appellant
Versus
State of Odisha – Respondent
BLAPL No. 502 of 2021
Decided on : 17-06-2021
Advocate Appeared:
For the Appellant :Mr. Pitambar Acharya (Senior Advocate)
For the Respondent:Mr. Soubhagya Ketan Nayak (Addl. Govt. Advocate)
Point of Law: Economic offences - Bail Rejected - Accused had fraudulent and dishonest intention to deceive job aspirant and to get gained wrongfully - When some important aspects investigation is still under progress, in larger interest of public and State, court not inclined to release petitioner on bail.
Headnote:
Indian Penal Code, 1860 - Sections 415, 419, 420, 467, 468, 471 read with section 120-B - Information Technology Act, 2000 - Sections 66-C, 66-D - Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 - Section 173(8) - Seeking for bail - Disproportionate assets - Committed fraud, forgery by manufacturing Id mail and other documents to misappropriate money from public by impersonating fraudulently - alleging that it was brought to notice of Company on several occasions that certain unscrupulous elements were committing fraud and thereby causing harm to reputation of Company by contacting common public with criminal intent to defraud them and collect illicit money from them on pretext of offering them jobs in Company - Whether petitioner was working in Tata Motors Division Office at Pimri, Pune and he was ever empanelled in TATA Administrative Service.
Finding of the court: Making false promise by an accused to job aspirant by assuring that he would get job on payment of huge amount itself establishes one of essential ingredients of cheating as envisaged under section 415 of Indian Penal Code that at time of making promise - Nature and gravity of accusation, severity of punishment in event of conviction, position and standing of petitioner and co-accused sitting M.L.A. who has been recently released from judicial custody, reasonable apprehension of tampering with evidence and when on some important aspects investigation is still under progress, in larger interest of public and State, court not inclined to release petitioner on bail - White-collar crimes, which have drastic effects, are required to be dealt with iron hands and severe punishment needs to be awarded to culprits on proof of charges by prosecution beyond all reasonable doubt.
Result: Bail application rejected.
JUDGMENT :
S.K. SAHOO, J.
The petitioner Akash Kumar Pathak has knocked at the portals of this Court by filing an application under section 439 of Cr.P.C. seeking for bail in connection with CID, CB, Cyber Crime P.S. Case No.26 of 2020 corresponding to C.T. Case No.4053 of 2020 pending on the file of S.D.J.M., Bhubaneswar in which first charge sheet has been submitted for offences punishable under sections 419, 420, 467, 468, 471 read with section 120-B of the Indian Penal Code and 66-C, 66-D of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (hereafter ‘I.T. Act’) keeping the investigation open under section 173(8) of Cr.P.C.
2. On 18.05.2020 an email was received from one Trilochan Mohanty, Deputy General Manger-Ethics at Tata Motors Limited (hereafter ‘the Company’), Jamshedpur Works, Jamshedpur as authorised representative addressed to the IG, CID, CB, Cuttack, Odisha alleging therein that it was brought to the notice of the Company on several occasions that certain unscrupulous elements were committing fraud and thereby causing harm to the reputation of the Company by contacting common public with criminal intent to defraud them and collect illicit money from them on the pretext of offering them jobs in the Company. The modus operandi of such people was to use the logo of the Company and/or TATA Group and other easily identifiable insignia. They were mentioning a name and number of a person to whom they misrepresent as an official of the Company.
It is further mentioned in the email that an alarming case was brought to the notice of the Company through one email dated 7th May 2020 16:32 highlighting the illegal and unauthorized use of brand name and well known trademark of the Company and/or TATA and impersonation as an official of the Company relating to fraudulent job offer by Mr. Vijoy Jha from his email id vkjhamd@gmail.com enquiring about the confirmation of the post of the petitioner who is the son of an Indian Forest Officer of Odisha Cadre Mr. A.K. Pathak and that the petitioner was taking huge amount of money fraudulently from unemployed youth to secure them a job in the Company. The email also stated that the petitioner was illegally impersonating and projecting himself as MD, Tata Motors, Pune Passenger Division and CEO designate. A copy of the aforesaid email dated 7th May 2020 was attached to the email dated 18.05.2020. It is stated that the petitioner was using (i) A fake ID card mentioning Employee ID 88176 (ii) A fake visiting card with the official details as Akash Kumar Pathak, TAS, VP-Administration, 1st Floor, JRD Administrative Block, Tata Motors Limited, Telco Road, Pimpri, Pune-411018, Email ID-akash.pathak@tatamotors.com and Contact nos. 9556968888/7077608883. Copies of the said fake ID card and visiting card used by the petitioner were attached to the email for taking drastic legal actions against the culprits.
The fake ID card and visiting card indicated having ‘TATA’ stylized word mark as it appears on various passenger and commercial vehicles manufactured by TML. Those cards were having the ‘T in circle’ blue design mark which is a mark appearing on various passenger and commercial vehicles manufactured by TML by which the public identifies the conglomerate and the various products offered. The email id of such person mentioned in the email has the word ‘Tata’ in it.
The person sending email found certain other evidence in support of the complaints pertaining to the petitioner that he had donated rupees five lakhs by fraudulently portraying himself as a M.D. (I/C) of the Passenger Division at Pune to the CM of Odisha at his official residence in Bhubaneswar, Odisha which can be found in the newspaper articles at http://tathya.in/news/39145/0/Pathak-Contributes-To-CMRF and http://odishabarta.com/2020/04/19/3263/. The Company also found the LinkedIn and Facebook Profile of the petitioner posing as TAS officer of Tata Motors Limited joined in 2017. A screenshot of the same was also attached to the email.
It is furt
