Sharif Mohammed Bapu Thottyli vs State of Maharashtra — Bombay HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

Sharif Mohammed Bapu Thottyli vs State of Maharashtra — Bombay HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Interim protection only: no coercive action against the applicant in the present crime till the next date (18 July 2025), conditional upon the applicant attending the concerned police station on 14-16 July 2025 between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm, surrendering his mobile phone and cooperating with the investigation. First informant given leave to be impleaded as party respondent. Application adjourned by consent to 18 July 2025; no final adjudication on the anticipatory bail question was made in this order.

Issue for consideration

Whether the applicant is entitled to anticipatory bail in respect of the FIR registered in June 2025, given senior counsel's contentions that he was falsely implicated, that the FIR was lodged after an inordinate and unexplained delay (incident of 22 February 2023 vs FIR of June 2025), that there is an absence of corroborative material or prima facie evidence, and that the FIR is a counterblast to the applicant's own November 2024 complaint.

Court's answer

This Court granted leave to implead the first informant as party respondent to the application; amendment to be carried out within one week, thereafter notice to be issued to the newly added respondent, with the investigating officer to serve the notice.

Ratio / Principle

As an interim measure pending the next date, the applicant is directed to attend the concerned police station on 14, 15 and 16 July 2025 between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm, surrender his mobile phone and cooperate with the investigation.

Key takeaways

There shall not be any coercive action against the applicant in the present crime till the next date (the sentence continues onto the next page as 'against the applicant in the present crime till the next date', i.e., until 18 July 2025).ratio¶15
By consent, the matter stands over to 18 July 2025 for further consideration of the anticipatory bail application (the learned APP having sought accommodation to take instructions).ratio¶15

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Bombay High Court (Criminal Appellate Jurisdiction), Justice R. N. Laddha - interim order dated 11 July 2025 in Anticipatory Bail Application No.1858 of 2025 (Sharif Mohsmmed Bapu Thottyli v. The State of Maharashtra). Granting leave to implead the first informant as party respondent (amendment within one week; notice through the investigating officer, PI Uma Gawali of Kherwadi police station, Mumbai), the Court directed the applicant to attend the concerned police station on 14-16 July 2025 between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm, surrender his mobile phone and cooperate with investigation, and held that there shall be no coercive action against the applicant in the present crime till the next date. Matter adjourned by consent to 18 July 2025, the learned APP seeking accommodation to take instructions. Counsel for the applicant contended the FIR (June 2025, for an incident of 22 February 2023) was delayed over two years, unsupported by corroborative material, and a counterblast to the applicant's November 2024 complaint. No statute or precedent was cited; no final decision on anticipatory bail was rendered.

Digitally signed by CHITRA CHITRA SANJAYSONAWANE SANJAYSONAWANE Date:2025.07.12 11:14:01 +0530

Chitra Sonawane 910-aba-1858-25.doc

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

Anticipatory Bail Application No.1858 of 2025

Sharif Mohsmmed Bapu Thottyli … Applicant. Vs. The State of Maharashtra … Respondent.

Mr Rajiv Chavan, Sr Advocate a/w Shriya Patil, Anushka Bandekar, i/by Sonam Pandey a/w Jay Salunke for the applicant.

Mr Anand Shalgaonkar, APP for the respondent / State. PI Uma Gawali, Kherwadi police station, Mumbai.

Coram : R.N.Laddha, J. Date : 11 July 2025.

P.C. :

Leave to implead the first informant as party respondent to this application. Amendment shall be carried out within one week from today. After the amendment is carried out, issue notice to the newly added respondent. The investigating officer to serve the notice.

The learned Senior Counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant has been falsely implicated in the present case with malicious intent. He submits that the FIR has been lodged after an inordinate and unexplained delay which Page No. 1 of 3 ____________________________________________ 11 July 2025

Chitra Sonawane 910-aba-1858-25.doc

significantly undermines the credibility and reliability of the allegations made therein. The learned Senior Counsel submits that there is a complete absence of any corroborative material or prima facie evidence on record to support the allegations levelled by the complainant. The incident in question is alleged to have taken place on 22 February 2023; however, the FIR came to be registered only in June 2025, more than two years later. This delay, coupled with the lack of justification for the same, clearly indicates that the FIR is motivated and tainted with malafides. The learned Senior Counsel also submits that the instant FIR is a counterblast to the complaint lodged by the applicant against the informant in November 2024 and thus, an act of retaliation.

The learned APP, however, seeks an accommodation to take instructions.

By consent stand over to 18 July 2025 . In the meantime, the applicant shall attend the concerned police station on 14, 15 and 16 July 2025, between 11:00 am and 2:00 pm, surrender his mobile phone and cooperate with the investigation. There shall not be any coercive action

Page No. 2 of 3

11 July 2025

Chitra Sonawane 910-aba-1858-25.doc

against the applicant in the present crime till the next date.

[R. N. Laddha, J.]

Page No. 3 of 3

11 July 2025