Vikrant Dattatray Deshmukh v. State of Maharashtra

Bombay HC7 Apr 2025WP/153/2024

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Bombay High Court; Criminal Writ Petition 153/2024 with Interim Application 832/2025; Vikrant Dattatray Deshmukh v. State of Maharashtra; MCOC cases consolidation/merger refused; six Special Cases (58, 84, 195, 181, 93, 188 of 2023) at Panvel Court; Special Case 293 of 2020 at Thane Special Court; Regular Criminal Case 184 of 2023 at JMFC Uran to be forwarded to Panvel; day-to-day trial request; liberty to file application for expeditious hearing before concerned Court; petition and interim application disposed off; decision dated 7 April 2025.

What did the court decide?

Prayer for merging all MCOC cases before one Court not granted (Thane case not merged); Petitioner left free to apply to the concerned Court for expeditious hearing; Interim Application No. 832 of 2025 also disposed off. ¶¶20

Vikrant Dattatray Deshmukh vs State of Maharashtra — Bombay HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

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Issue for consideration

Whether all the MCOC cases pending against the Petitioner before different courts (Panvel, Thane and Uran) should be merged and tried together before one Court. +1 more

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Court's answer

It is open to the Petitioner to file an appropriate Application before the concerned Court for expeditious hearing, which shall be considered on its own merits by the concerned Judge.

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Ratio / Principle

Since all the 7 MCOC cases are being tried by the Panvel Court (the Uran case being forwarded there), the Court is not inclined to merge the MCOC case pending before the Thane Court with the cases pending before the Panvel Court.

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Key takeaways

The Writ Petition is disposed off accordingly.ratio¶¶20
In view of the order passed in the Writ Petition, nothing survives in Interim Application No. 832 of 2025, which is also disposed off.ratio¶¶26

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Bombay High Court (Revati Mohite Dere & Dr. Neela Gokhale, JJ.), Criminal Writ Petition No. 153 of 2024, decided 7 April 2025: A petition sent through jail by an accused in MCOC proceedings sought merger of all his MCOC cases before one Court and a day-to-day trial. Per the Special Public Prosecutor, six MCOC cases (Spl. Cases 58/2023, 84/2023, 195/2023, 181/2023, 93/2023, 188/2023) were pending before the Panvel Court, Special Case No.293 of 2020 before the Thane Special Court, and Regular Criminal Case No.184 of 2023 before the JMFC, Uran, which being Sessions triable would be forwarded to the Panvel Court. Since all seven such cases were thus being tried by the Panvel Court, the Court declined to merge the Thane case with the Panvel cases and disposed of the Petition, leaving the Petitioner free to seek expedited hearing before the concerned Court on its own merits. Interim Application No. 832 of 2025, having nothing survive, was also disposed off.

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2025:BHC-AS:17050-DB

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36-wp-153-2024.doc

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY

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CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

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CRIMINAL WRIT PETITION NO. 153 OF 2024

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WITH

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INTERIM APPLICATION NO. 832 OF 2025

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Vikrant Dattatray Deshmukh …..Petitioner Vs. The State of Maharashtra …..Respondent

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Ms. Leena R. Patil, Appointed Advocate for the Petitioner. Mr. Mahesh Mule, Special Public Prosecutor with Mrs. Nidhi Narwekar & Ms. Kranti T. Hiwrale, APP, for the Respondent-State. Mr. Mahesh Jadhav, API, Crime Branch, Navi Mumbai, Investigation Officer is present.

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CORAM : REVATI MOHITE DERE &

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DR. NEELA GOKHALE, JJ. DATE : 7^th APRIL 2025.

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P.C.:-

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By this Petition sent through jail, the Petitioner seeks

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merging of all the MCOC cases before one Court and for conduct of the trial on day-to-day basis. Learned Special Public Prosecutor, on instructions, states that there are in all six cases pending before the Panvel Court i.e., Special Case Nos.58 of 2023, 84 of 2023, 195 of 2023, 181 of 2023, 93 of 2023 and 188 of 2023; one case, i.e., Special Case No.293 of 2020 is pending before the Thane Special

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Gaikwad RD

36-wp-153-2024.doc

Court; and presently one case, i.e., Regular Criminal Case No.184 of 2023 is pending before the learned Judicial Magistrate First Class at Uran. It does appear from what is disclosed to us by the learned Special Public Prosecutor that six cases are pending before the Panvel Court and one case before the Thane Court. We are informed by the learned Special Public Prosecutor that one case is pending before the Court of Judicial Magistrate First Class, Uran, being Sessions triable will also be forwarded to the Panvel Court, where the Petitioner’s six cases are pending.

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In view of the fact that all the 7 MCOC cases are being tried by the Panvel Court, we are not inclined to merge the MCOC case pending before the Thane Court, with the aforesaid cases pending before the Panvel Court.

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The Petition is accordingly disposed off.

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Needless to state, that it is open for the Petitioner to file appropriate Application before the concerned Court for expeditious hearing, which shall be considered on its own merits by the concerned Judge.

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Gaikwad RD

36-wp-153-2024.doc