Insufficient evidence justified pre-arrest bail, emphasizing the applicant's cooperation in the investigation.

ORDER

This application is filed under Section 482 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita , 2023 (for short, BNSS ), seeking pre-arrest bail. 2. The applicant is the accused No.3 in Crime No.2041/2025 of Adoor Police Station, Pathanamthitta District. The offence alleged is punishable under Section 304 r/w 3(5) of the BNS.

3. The prosecution case, in short, is that on 12.09.2025 at 1.50 p.m., the accused Nos.1 and 2 had snatched away a bag containing Rs.1,90,133/- from the possession of the defacto complainant at a place namely Cherupuncha. The applicant and the accused No.3 had given directions for the execution of the alleged theft by the accused Nos.1 and 2 and thereby committed the offence.

4. I have heard Sri.T.P.Pradeep, the learned counsel for the applicant and Sri. M.C. Ashi, the learned Senior Public Prosecutor.

Perused the case diary.

5. The learned counsel for the applicant submitted that the applicant is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the above crime. The counsel further submitted that no materials are on record to connect the applicant with the alleged crime; hence, he is entitled to bail. The learned Senior Public Prosecutor, on the other hand, submitted that the alleged incident occurred as part of the applicant's intentional criminal acts, and if he is released on bail at this stage, it will affect the course of the investigation.

6. Admittedly, it was the accused Nos.1 and 2 who snatched away the bag containing cash from the possession of the defacto complainant. The allegation against the applicant is that he gave direction to the accused Nos. 1 and 2 for the execution of the theft. However, no sufficient materials have been collected so far to substantiate the said allegation. Considering the allegations made against the applicant, his custodial interrogation seems unnecessary. For these reasons, I find this to be an appropriate case to grant pre-

arrest bail to the applicant.

In the result, the application is allowed on the following conditions:-

(i) The applicant shall appear before the Investigating Officer on 16.03.2026 at 10.00 a.m., for interrogation. The Investigating Officer is free to interrogate the applicant on that day till 4.00 p.m., after giving adequate intervals.

(ii) The applicant shall be deemed to be under custody during the aforesaid period for facilitating the requirement of the investigation.

(iii) If the Investigating Officer intends to arrest the applicant, then he shall be released on bail on executing a bond for Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees One lakh only) with two solvent sureties for the like sum each to the satisfaction of the arresting officer/investigating officer, as the case may be.

(iv) The applicant shall fully cooperate with the investigation, including subjecting himself to the deemed police custody for discovery, if any, as and when demanded.

(v) The applicant shall appear before the investigating officer between 10.00 a.m. and 11.00 a.m. every Saturday until further orders. He shall also appear before the investigating officer as and when required.

(vi) The applicant shall not commit any offence of a like nature while on bail.

(vii) The applicant shall not attempt to contact any of the prosecution witnesses, directly or through any other person, or in any other way try to tamper with the evidence or influence any witnesses or other persons related to the investigation.

(viii) The applicant shall not leave the State of Kerala without the permission of the trial Court.

(ix) The application, if any, for deletion/modification of bail conditions or cancellation of bail on the grounds of violating the bail conditions shall be filed at the jurisdictional court.

Sd/-