ORDER

Date : 07-11-2022 Heard Mr. A. Das, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr. M.P. Goswami, learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the respondent State of Assam.

2. By this application under Section 438, Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 [CrPC], the petitioner viz. Fazlu Karim @ Fazlu Sk has approached this Court seeking the benefit of pre-arrest bail, apprehending his arrest, in connection with Golakganj Police Station Case no. 188/2022 registered for offences punishable under Sections 342/406/325/384, Indian Penal Code [IPC].

3. In the First Information Report [FIR] registered on 28.05.2022, the informant has named 4 [four] persons as accused with the present petitioner as accused no. 2. As per the FIR, the accused no. 2 i.e. the present petitioner by deceit made the informant to belief that the informant would be given works of tailoring wherefrom he and his assistant could earn about 13,000/- per month each and with such false assurance, he persuaded the informant and one Sanu Kumar to go to Cooch Bihar. When the informant and Sanu Kumar reached Cooch Bihar as persuaded by the accused no. 2, they were held captive inside the house of the accused no. 1. The accused persons had allegedly snatched the mobile phones from the two and assaulted both of them severely. The allegations are also to be effect that the accused persons demanded a sum of Rs. 10,00,000/- for the release of the informant and Sanu Kumar. As the informants are from poor families, they could not make the demanded amount. When both the informant and Sanu Kumar were being taken in a Maruti vehicle [without any number plate], the police personnel from Halakura Police Out Post recovered both of them by carrying out search operation.

4. Mr. Das, learned counsel for the petitioner has submitted that there is no involvement of the petitioner in the act of abduction and subsequent demand of money from the informant and Sanu Kumar.

5. Mr. Goswami, learned Additional Public Prosecutor who has received the case diary, has submitted on the basis of the materials available in the case diary, that the informant and Sanu Kumar used to work as tailors at Halakura under Golakganj Police Station, District-Dhubri. The materials in the case diary go to indicate that the petitioner [accused no. 2] who by making false promise and by practicing deception to the informant, persuaded the informant along with his associate, Sanu Kumar to go to Cooch Bihar wherein the informant and Sanu Kumar were held captive inside the house of the accused no. 1. The materials go to indicate that both the informant and Sanu Kumar in their statements recorded under Section 161, CrPC, have corroborated the factum of demand made by the accused persons including the present petitioner-accused no. 2 and also about severe physical assault upon them. The materials also go to indicate that both of them could be recovered only when a search operation was carried out by the police personnel from Halakura Police Out Post based on information received.

6. I have perused the materials available in the case diary, collected during the course of investigation carried out so far. Having regard to the incriminating materials available in the case diary and the serious allegations levelled against the accused person in the FIR, I am of the considered view that this is not a fit case to extend the benefit of pre-arrest bail under Section 438, CrPC to the petitioner. Accordingly, the prayer for pre-arrest bail is rejected.

JUDGE

Comparing Assistant