Santosh Singh Vs State of U.P. — Allahabad HC (2023) — LawSathi Research

Santosh Singh Vs State of U.P. — Allahabad HC (2023) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Applicant Santosh Singh to be released on bail in Case Crime No. 89 of 2022 on furnishing a personal bond and two sureties each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the court below, subject to conditions of non-tampering with evidence / non-influencing witnesses and appearance before the trial court on fixed dates.

Issue for consideration

Whether the applicant Santosh Singh should be enlarged on bail in Case Crime No. 89 of 2022, Police Station Dokati, District Ballia, under Section 2/3(1) of the Gangsters Act. +1 more

Court's answer

The arguments advanced on behalf of the applicant (prior bail in the solitary case depicted in the gang chart, no gang membership, criminal history explained, no flight risk) could not be satisfactorily refuted by the learned AGA and entitle the applicant to grant of bail.

Ratio / Principle

The bail application is allowed without making any observations on the merits of the case.

Key takeaways

The applicant is to be released on bail on furnishing a personal bond and two sureties each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the court below.ratio¶13
Bail is granted subject to conditions, including that the applicant will not tamper with the evidence or influence any witness during the trial and will appear before the trial court on the date fixed unless personal presence is exempted.ratio¶14

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Allahabad High Court (Hon'ble Ajay Bhanot, J.; order dated 25.1.2023) allowed Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. 55090 of 2022 by Santosh Singh seeking enlargement on bail in Case Crime No. 89 of 2022, Police Station Dokati, District Ballia, under Section 2/3(1) of the Gangsters Act. The applicant, in jail since 10.10.2022, had his bail rejected by the learned trial court on 03.11.2022. The Court found that the submissions of Shri Kamal Krishna, learned Senior Counsel (assisted by Sri Rajesh Kumar Srivastava) — that the applicant had already been enlarged on bail in the solitary criminal case depicted in the gang chart, was not a member of any criminal gang, had explained his criminal history, and was not a flight risk — could not be satisfactorily refuted by Shri Chandan Agrawal, learned AGA, and entitled the applicant to bail. Bail was allowed without any observations on the merits, on a personal bond and two sureties each in the like amount, subject to conditions that the applicant will not tamper with evidence or influence witnesses and will appear before the trial court on dates fixed unless exempted.

Court No. - 74

Case :- CRIMINAL MISC. BAIL APPLICATION No. - 55090 of 2022

Applicant :- Santosh Singh Opposite Party :- State of U.P. Counsel for Applicant :- Rajesh Kumar Singh,Prakhar Saran Srivastava,Shashi Bhushan Kunwar Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A.

Hon'ble Ajay Bhanot,J.

By means of the the bail application the applicant has prayed to be enlarged on bail in Case Crime No.89 of 2022 at Police Station-Dokati, DistrictBallia under Section 2/3(1) of Gangsters Act. The applicant is in jail since 10.10.2022.

The bail application of the applicant was rejected by the learned trial court on 03.11.2022. The following arguments made by Shri Kamal Krishna, learned Senior Counsel assisted by Sri Rajesh Kumar Srivastava, learned counsel on behalf of the applicant, which could not be satisfactorily refuted by Shri Chandan Agrawal, learned AGA from the record, entitle the applicant for grant of bail:

(1). The applicant has been enlarged on bail in the solitary criminal case depicted in the gang chart.

(2). He is not a member of any criminal gang.

(3). The applicant has explained his criminal

history. It is also contended that the applicant belongs to the economically poor strata of the society and is a convenient scapegoat for the police authorities. The applicant has been falsely nominated in a number of cases only to show the proficiency of the police investigators. The said cases do not have any bearing on the instant bail application.

(4). The applicant is not a flight risk. The applicant being a law abiding citizen has always cooperated with the investigation and undertakes to cooperate with the court proceedings. There is no possibility of his influencing witnesses, tampering with the evidence or reoffending.

In the light of the preceding discussion and without making any observations on the merits of the case, the bail application is allowed.

Let the applicant- Santosh Singh be released on bail in the aforesaid case crime number, on furnishing a personal bond and two sureties each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the court below. The following conditions be imposed in the interest of justice:-

(i) The applicant will not tamper with the evidence or influence any witness during the trial.

(ii) The applicant will appear before the trial court on the date fixed, unless personal presence is exempted.

Order Date :- 25.1.2023 Vandit

Digitally signed by :- VANDIT AGRAWAL High Court of Judicature at Allahabad