The court asserted the right to bail while weighing the nature of the allegations and custody duration under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.

ORDER

This is an application filed under Section 483 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita ( BNSS ), 2023.

2. The petitioner is accused No.3 in Crime No.1879 of 2025 of Kodungalloor Police Station, Thrissur District. The offences alleged against the petitioner and the other accused are punishable under Sections 3 18 (4), 316(2), 61(2) (a) read with Section 3 (5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita ( BNS ), 2023.

3. The prosecution case, as narrated in Annexure 5 order reads thus:

“the first and second accused, with the dishonest intention of deceiving the complainant and making unlawful gain, fraudulently obtained gold ornaments weighing about 160 grams, valued at approximately 20 lakhs, from the complainant under the pretext of a gold loan transaction and the first accused, who was the manager of "Surya Gold Loan" situated at Kavil Kadavu, Kodungallur, accepted the gold ornaments from the complainant on 17.12.2024 and 21.04.2025 as part of the pledged loan arrangement and gave her money in return. However, when the complainant later repaid the loan amount and came to retrieve her gold ornaments, both the first and second accused cheated her by not returning the gold omaments worth around ₹ 20 lakhs.”

4. The petitioner was arrested on 05.11.2025 and he has been in judicial custody since then.

5. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Senior Public Prosecutor.

6. The learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the investigation is practically over and further detention of the petitioner is not required.

7. The learned Senior Public Prosecutor opposed the bail plea of the petitioner.

8. Having regard to the nature of allegations and the tenure of judicial custody undergone by the petitioner, I feel that the petitioner is entitled to be released on bail on conditions.

In the result, the Bail Application is allowed as follows:

(a) The petitioner is ordered to be released on bail on his executing bond for Rs.50,000/- (Rupees Fifty Thousand Only) with two solvent sureties each for the like sum to the satisfaction of the jurisdictional court.

(b) The petitioner shall appear before the Investigating Officer on all Mondays and Fridays between 10A.M. and 11 A.M. for a period of three months or till the final report is filed, whichever is earlier.

(c) The petitioner shall not try to influence the prosecution witnesses or attempt to tamper with the evidence.

(d) The petitioner shall not commit any similar offence while on bail.

(e) If any of the bail conditions are violated by the petitioner, the jurisdictional Court will be at liberty to cancel the bail, in accordance with law.