2025:CGHC:55806 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR CRMP No. 3456 of 2025 Pramod Kumar Through Power of Attorney Holder Umesh Kumar Bhardwaj S/o Pancharam Bhardwaj, Aged About 34 Years, R/o Village Piraiya, P.S.

Chakarbhatha, District Bilaspur C.G.

... Petitioner versus State of Chhattisgarh Through Police Station Chakarbhatha, District Bilaspur C.G.

... Respondent For Petitioner : Mr. Ayush Verma, Advocate For State : Mr. Ajit Singh, GA (Hon’ble Shri Justice Arvind Kumar Verma)

Order on Board

17/11/2025

1. The instant petition has been filed under Section 528 of the Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 by the petitioner assailing the order dated 23/09/2025 passed by the Special Judge Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957/Sessions Judge, Bilaspur, in MJC Cri No.64/2025 whereby the learned Court has rejected the petitioner’s application seeking interim custody of the petitioner’s Digitally signed by ASHUTOSH vehicle i.e. Trolley bearing Registration No.CG-11-AR-5734.

ASHUTOSH MISHRA MISHRA Date:

2025.11.19 +0530

2. Brief facts of the case are as projected by the petitioner are that on

16.06.2025, during a routine inspection conducted in the local area, officials intercepted the vehicle and seized it on the allegation of transportation of sand without production of valid documents at the spot. On the basis of the said allegation, Police Station Chakarbhatha registered Crime No. 249/2025 for offences under Sections 4(1), 4(1)(A), and 21 of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, and Sections 303(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. After seizure, the vehicle has been kept in open premises at the Police Station, exposed to weather conditions, resulting in continuous deterioration of its mechanical parts. Accordingly, the Petitioner moved an application under Section 503 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 before the Court of the Special Judge (Mines and Minerals Act), Bilaspur, seeking interim custody of the vehicle on supurdnama, submitting that he is the registered owner and is ready and willing to furnish adequate security and abide by any conditions imposed by the Court. In the said application, the Petitioner submitted that he is the lawful and registered owner of the vehicle, that the vehicle is required for his agricultural and household purposes, and that the sand in question had already been procured earlier for the construction of a residential house sanctioned under a Central Government housing scheme, and was only being shifted locally from a temporary storage point to the construction site. The Petitioner further submitted that continued seizure of the vehicle in the open is causing avoidable wear and damage to the vehicle and that he is prepared to produce the vehicle before the concerned authorities as and when required. The petitioner also submitted the Mineral Transit Pass No. 9295641. By order dated 23.09.2025, the Learned Special Judge (Mines and Minerals Act), Bilaspur, rejected the Petitioner's application for interim custody of the said vehicle. Hence this petition.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioner would contend that learned Court, while rejecting the application for interim custody, did not record any finding disputing or discrediting the Petitioner's status as the registered owner of the vehicle. He would next contend that it is a trite law where ownership is undisputed and the vehicle is not required for evidentiary purposes in its present form, interim custody ordinarily ought to be granted subject to suitable conditions, so as to prevent deterioration of the property during pendency of proceedings. He would next contend that the sand in question had already been procured and delivered earlier for the construction of a residential house sanctioned under a Central Government housing scheme, and that the vehicle was being used only for short-distance shifting from a temporary storage location. The Petitioner had not been alleged to be