IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH, SHIMLA CrMMO No. : 726 of 2025 Reserved on : 05.08.2025 Decided on : 07.08.2025 State of Himachal Pradesh …Petitioner Versus Manav Sharma …Respondent Coram The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Virender Singh, Judge.
Whether approved for reporting?1 Yes.
For the petitioner: Mr. Tejasvi Sharma, Additional Advocate General,with Ms. Ranjna Patial, Deputy Advocate General, assisted by Dy.SP Manvinder Thakur, SI Jagat Ram, SHO and HC Baljit Kumar, Police Station Majra, District Sirmaur, H.P.
For the respondent: Mr. Sudhir Thakur and Mr. Anshul Bansal, Senior Advocates, with Mr. Adhiraj Thakur, Mr. Ankit Chandel, Mr. Somesh Sharma and Mr.
Peeyush Dhanotia, Advocates.
1 Whether Reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgment? Yes.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH, SHIMLA CrMMO No. : 726 of 2025 Reserved on : 05.08.2025 Decided on : 07.08.2025 State of Himachal Pradesh …Petitioner Versus Manav Sharma …Respondent Coram The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Virender Singh, Judge.
Whether approved for reporting?1 Yes.
For the petitioner: Mr. Tejasvi Sharma, Additional Advocate General,with Ms. Ranjna Patial, Deputy Advocate General, assisted by Dy.SP Manvinder Thakur, SI Jagat Ram, SHO and HC Baljit Kumar, Police Station Majra, District Sirmaur, H.P.
For the respondent: Mr. Sudhir Thakur and Mr. Anshul Bansal, Senior Advocates, with Mr. Adhiraj Thakur, Mr. Ankit Chandel, Mr. Somesh Sharma and Mr.
Peeyush Dhanotia, Advocates.
1 Whether Reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the judgment? Yes.
Virender Singh, Judge.
State has filed the present petition, under Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (hereinafter referred to as ‘BNSS’), for setting aside orders, dated 1st July, 2025 and 4th July, 2025, passed by the Court of learned Judicial Magistrate First Class, Sirmaur at Nahan, District Sirmaur, H.P. (hereinafter referred to as ‘the trial Court’), in case FIR No. 97/2025, dated 13th June, 2025 (hereinafter referred to as ‘FIR in question’), registered under Sections 299, 132, 191 (2), 191 (3), 190, 351 (2), 115 (2), 121 (1), 109, 61 (2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (hereinafter referred to as ‘BNS’), with Police Station Majra, District Sirmaur, H.P.
2. By way of the present petition, the following relief has been sought for:
“In view of the foregoing facts, it is humbly prayed that the orders dated 01.07.2025 and 04.07.2025 passed by Ld. JMFC Nahan, in FIR No. 97/2025 PS Majra be set aside and to expunge the adverse remarks made in the said orders against the SHO, PS Majra, and the Investigating Officer; with further prayer to grant police custody (remand) of accused Manav Sharma for a period as this Hon’ble Court may deem just and necessary in light of the fresh material; and pass such further orders as may be deemed just and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case in the interest of justice.”
3. According to the petitioner, during the investigation of the FIR in question, one of the co-accused Raman Kumar made a disclosure statement, regarding recovery of weapons, including gandasi and sword and revealed that the gandasi was supplied to him by accused- Manav Sharma (respondent). In this regard, copy of the disclosure statement has been annexed with the petition, as Annexure P-1.
4. On the basis of the said information, the police moved a remand application, dated 1st July, 2025, seeking three days’ custody of respondent-Manav Sharma, however, the said application has been dismissed by the learned trial Court, on 1st July, 2025, observing that the statement of co-accused was insufficient to grant remand, in the absence of any material and no new circumstance or change of circumstances has been mentioned, in the remand application.
5. It is the further case of the petitioner that during the course of investigation, one independent witness came forward, giving a statement, under Section 180 of the BNSS, confirming that respondent-Manav Sharma had supplied weapons to the rioters. The statement of the said witness has also been annexed with the petition, as Annexure P-4.
6. As such, according to the petitioner, fresh application was moved before the learned trial Court, which was again heard and dismissed on 4th July, 2025. Not only this, the learned trial Court has also made certain adverse remarks against the SHO by branding the investigation as biased, malafide, reprehensible and directed the Director General of Police to take action.
7. The orders are stated to be not sustainable in the eyes of law, as, the statement of independent witness was recorded only after 1st July, 2025, and the learned trial Court has not appreciated the evidentiary value of the material, so collected, during the investigation.
8. On the basis of the above facts, a prayer has been made to allow the petition, as prayed for.
9. Alongwith the petition, the confessional statement, dated 30th June, 2025, made by one Raman Kumar, under Section 23 (2) of the Bharatiya Sakhshya Adhiniyam (hereinafter referred to as ‘BSA’) has also been placed on record, in which, said Raman Kumar has allegedly confessed that on 13th June, 2025, at Majra, during the day time, Manav Sharma handed over him gandasi, after taking out the same from the place, where there were a number of trees, and after inflicting the injury on the police official, he threw the same at Kiratpur and that he can get the same recovered.
10. The remand application, dated 1st July, 2025; statement of Kulwinder Singh @ Shenty, recorded under Section 180 of the BNSS, on 2nd
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