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2025 Supreme(Online)(GUJ) 1488
HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT
HASMUKH D. SUTHAR, J
TUSHAR @ LUCKY JAYESHBHAI VAJANI – Appellant
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT – Respondent
R/CRIMINAL MISC.APPLICATION (FOR SUCCESSIVE REGULAR BAIL - AFTER CHARGESHEET) NO. 22623 of 2024
Bail is a rule and jail is an exception; personal liberty must be upheld unless compelling reasons exist to deny bail.
Headnote:(A) Bharatiya Nyaya Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 - Section 483 - Bail application - The applicant seeks regular bail in connection with serious charges including rape and extortion - The court considers the nature of accusations, severity of punishment, and the applicant's lack of past antecedents - The applicant has been in custody since 21.08.2024, and the investigation is complete with a chargesheet filed. (Paras 2, 5, 6, 8)
(B) Bail Jurisprudence - The principle that 'bail is a rule and jail is an exception' is emphasized, alongside the importance of personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution - The court finds that the applicant's continued detention would amount to pre-trial conviction. (Paras 7, 8)
Facts of the case:
The applicant is accused of establishing a physical relationship with the victim under false pretenses and subsequently blackmailing her with a video, while another accused has already been granted bail. (Paras 3, 4)
Findings of Court:
The court finds that the applicant is eligible for bail considering the circumstances, including the completion of the investigation and the absence of prior criminal history. (Paras 6, 8)
Issues: The main issues include the nature of the accusations against the applicant and whether the applicant should be granted bail considering the circumstances. (Paras 4, 5)
Ratio Decidendi: The court ruled that the applicant's continued detention is unwarranted given the completion of the investigation and the principle that bail should be granted unless there are compelling reasons to deny it. (Paras 7, 8)
Result: The application for bail is allowed.
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. applicant accused of blackmail (Para 2) |
| 2. defense claims innocence (Para 3) |
| 3. opposition argues serious charges (Para 4) |
| 4. factors for bail consideration (Para 5) |
| 5. consideration of case aspects (Para 6) |
| 6. bail jurisprudence emphasized (Para 7) |
| 7. bail granted with conditions (Para 8) |
| 8. conditions for bail outlined (Para 9 , 12) |
| 9. bail bond execution (Para 10) |
| 10. trial court's independence (Para 11) |
ORAL ORDER
[1.0] RULE. Learned APP waives service of rule for the respondent-State.
[2.0] The present application is the successive bail application, filed under Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Suraksha Sanhita , 2023 (for short “BNSS”) for regular bail in connection with FIR being C.R. No.11208001240083 of 2024 registered with Mahila Police Station, Rajkot City for the offences under Sections 64, 77, 308, 352, 54 of BNS.
[3.0] Learned advocate appearing on behalf of the applicant submits that applicant is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the offence and nothing is required to be recovered or discovered. Chargesheet has been filed. He submits that the applicant- accused no.1 and the complainant - victim were initially in a deep relation and thereafter, they have developed physical relation with consent. It is further alleged that the applicant has again developed physical relation with the victim girl against her wish and volition and shoot the vedio. It is alleged that the accused no.2 has sent the vedio to the victim girl on her mobile and also threatened the victim and demanded Rs.5,00,000/- from the victim. The accused no.2 also threatened if the victim did not gave money, she circulate the vedio of victim. He further submits that the accuesd no.2, who has sent the vedio to the victim girl and administered the treat as well as demanded the money, has been enlarged on bail. He further submits that the applicant is being blackmailed by the complainant and taken money from the applicant. He further submits that the applicant has filed a complaint against the complainant for extortion. He further submits that the applicant is not having past antecedent. He therefore submits that, considering the nature of the offence, the applicant may be enlarged on regular bail by imposing suitable conditions.
[4.0] Learned APP appearing on behalf of the respondent-State as well as learned advocate appearing for the complainant have opposed the present application and requested to dismiss the present application for regular bail on the ground that the applicant is facing the serious charge of rape. They have submitted that on the pretext of marriage, the present applicant has established the physical relation with victim and shoot the vedio of victim girl of private moment and thereafter, administered the treat to viral the vedio and also, demanded Rs.5 lac from the victim, which cannot be ruled out. He further submits that involvement of the present applicant is clearly spelt out from the body of FIR as well as chargesheet papers. Therefore, present application does not deserve consideration.
[5.0] While granting bail, the Court has to consider the involvement of the accused in the alleged offence, the jurisdiction to grant bail has to be exercised on the basis of the well settled principles having regard to the facts and circumstances of each case and the following factors are to be taken into consideration while considering an application for bail: (i) the nature of accusation and the severity of the punishment and the nature of the materials relied upon by the prosecution; (ii) reasonable apprehension of tampering with the witnesses and threat to the complainant or the witnesses; (iii) reasonable possibility of securing the presence of the accused at the time of trial or the likelihood of his abscondence; (iv) character behaviour and standing of the accused and the circumstances which are peculiar to the accused; (v) larger interest of the public or the State and similar other considerations are required to be consi
