The High Court allowed a criminal bail application for the applicant accused of offences under IPC and POCSO Act, finding prima facie no material to corroborate the charge and noting no prior criminal history.
Allowed bail on furnishing personal bonds and two sureties of Rs.25,000 each.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
Neutral Citation No. - 2024:AHC-LKO:2439
Court No. - 12
Case :- CRIMINAL MISC. BAIL APPLICATION No. - 71 of 2024
Applicant :- Mohd. Akeel Opposite Party :- State Of U.P. Thru. Prin. Secy. Home Lko. And 4others
Counsel for Applicant :- Ranjit Singh, Mahendra Pratap Singh Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A.
Hon'ble Pankaj Bhatia,J.
2 . In terms of the F.I.R., it was alleged that the daughter of the informant had enticed away by one Dablu Sahu and a call has also been made from a particular number by the said person demanding Rs.10,000/-. Subsequently, however, in the statement under Section 161 Cr.P.C. the victim stated that she was aged about 16 years and she had gone to her maternal uncle's home at Pratapgarh, where one Golu and applicant had taken her by use of force to Prayagraj and thereafter wrong was done to her. In the statement under Section 164 Cr.P.C., she stated that she had gone to see a fair when on the way back one Devendra and the applicant took her by use of force to Allahabad in a Car and committed wrong on her. It was also stated that both of them took her to Rajasthan thereafter and sold her to a man. It was also stated that at Allahabad they have misbehaved with her. It was also stated that there was a dispute going on in between Imam, the applicant and Devendra and there were enmity between the two families. She also stated that video was also made. In the light of the said, the
submission of the counsel for the applicant is that in the recovery memo, the police had recovered the girl from Pratapgarh Bus Stand, thus the entire story looses the credibility. My attention is also drawn to the statement of the informant, wherein he has stated that there was a dispute with regard to elections to the post of Pradhan with Imamuddin and the applicant and Devendra used to help him. In short, apart from the statement under Sections 161 & 164 Cr.P.C., prima facie, no material exists to corroborate or link the applicant with the offence in question. The statement under Section 164 Cr.P..C, looses credibility in view of the recovery memo.
3. Learned A.G.A. opposed the bail prayer.
4. Considering the said statements coupled with the fact that the applicant has no criminal history and is in jail since 16.08.2023 and there is nothing on record to demonstrate that the applicant if enlarged on bail, would in any way adversely affect the trial and without expressing any opinion on merit, I am of the view that the applicant is entitled to be released on bail. Accordingly, the bail application is allowed .
5. Let the applicant Mohd. Akeel be released on bail in FIR/ Case Crime No. 217 of 2023, under Sections 363, 366A, 376-D IPC and Section 5G/6 POCSO Act, police station Jethwara, District Pratapgarh on his furnishing personal bonds and two reliable sureties of Rs.25,000/- each to the satisfaction of the court concerned with the following conditions:
(a) The applicant shall execute a bond to undertake to attend the hearings;
(b) The applicant shall not commit any offence similar to the offence of which he is accused or suspected of the commission; and
(c) The applicant shall not directly or indirectly make any inducement, threat or promise to any person acquainted with the facts of the case so as to dissuade him from disclosing such facts to the Court or to any police officer or tamper with the evidence.
Order Date :- 9.1.2024 Arun
Digitally signed by :- ARUN KUMAR High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, Lucknow Bench
1 issue framed by the court
Whether the applicant is entitled to bail in the present criminal case.
Mohd. Akeel
State Of U.P.
Pankaj Bhatia
As recorded by the court registry
2 orders share this CNR
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
