Gujarat High Court
Dashrathbhai Bholidas Patel vs State Of Gujarat on 17 September, 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION
R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025
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Reserved On : 09/09/2025
Pronounced On : 17/09/2025
IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/CRIMINAL MISC.APPLICATION (FOR ANTICIPATORY BAIL) NO.
18098 of 2025
FOR APPROVAL AND SIGNATURE:
HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE DIVYESH A. JOSHI
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Approved for Reporting Yes No
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DASHRATHBHAI BHOLIDAS PATEL
Versus
STATE OF GUJARAT
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Appearance:
MR ASIM PANDYA, SENIOR ADVOCATE WITH NIMIT Y SHUKLA(8338)
for the Applicant(s) No. 1
MR.ALOK M THAKKAR(6510) for the Respondent(s) No. 1
MR MITESH AMIN, ADDITIONAL ADVOCATE GENERAL WITH MR
HARDIK DAVE, PUBLIC PROSECUTOR WITH MR ROHAN SHAH, APP
for the Respondent(s) No. 1
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE DIVYESH A. JOSHI
CAV JUDGMENT
1. Rule. Learned APP waives service of notice of rule for respondent - State of Gujarat.
2. By way of the present application under Section 482 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short "BNSS"), the applicant has prayed for anticipatory bail in the event of Page 1 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined arrest in connection with the FIR being C.R.No.11192011220374 of 2022 registered with the Bopal Police Station, Ahmedabad Rural for the alleged offences as mentioned in the FIR.
3. Heard learned Senior Advocate Mr. Asim Pandya assisted by learned advocate Mr. Nimit Shukla for the applicant, learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Mitesh Amin assisted by learned Public Prosecutor Mr. Hardik Dave and learned APP Mr. Rohan Shah for respondent - State and learned advocate Mr. Alok Thakkar for the original complainant.
4. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Asim Pandya assisted by learned advocate Mr. Nimit Shukla for the applicant submits that as per the case of the prosecution, the so-called incident is occurred on 13.11.1982, whereas, FIR is registered on 25.11.2022. Thus, FIR is registered after a period of 40 years and there is no explanation worth-the-name in the entire body of the FIR about the delayed registration of the FIR. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Pandya has read the FIR and submitted that the sum and substance of the charge of accusations levelled against the applicant is that one person had appeared before the Talati in the revenue proceedings and by disclosing incorrect facts, his name was mutated in the revenue record and he was identified by Page 2 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined three persons. The applicant was not at all connected and/or associated with the said so- called transaction took place in the revenue proceedings. He submits that as per the case of the prosecution, one Saryudasji impersonated himself as the legal heir of original owner Shatrugandasji and a panch-case was carried out by the revenue officer in presence of panchas and his name was mutated in the revenue record. Therefore, as per the settled proposition of law, at the most, it can be said that in the semi civil proceedings, false information was furnished by the accused persons, and therefore, the basic and essential ingredients of Sections 177, 181, 182, 191, 192, 193, 196, 199, 200, 205 and 209 of the Indian Penal Code could be said to have been made out. He submits that it is not the case of the prosecution that any document is forged and fabricated and placed before the revenue authority in the revenue proceedings, and therefore, by no stretch of imagination, it can be said that basic and essential ingredients of Sections 463 or 471 are made out. He further submits that even there is a specific legal bar under Section 195 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 and except upon the written complaint by the public officer before whom the aforesaid offence of 471 IPC is committed, the cognizance could not have been taken by the Page 3 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined Court.
5. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Asim Pandya further submits that it is an admitted position of fact that entry was mutated in the name of Saryudasji on 13.11.1982, whereas, the family members of the applicant had purchased the said property by executing registered sale deed on 25.08.1983 i.e. almost after 10 months after the entry was mutated in the name of Saryudasji. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Pandya has referred the sale deed and submitted that even applicant herein has also not signed the said document as one of the purchasers or witness or an affirming party. He further submits that at that relevant point of time, the competent Government Authority has also initiated proceedings under the Tenancy Act just to verify as to wether the seller and purchaser of the property are agriculturist or not and the said proceedings were continued till 1988 and thereafter names of applicant and his family members were entered into revenue record and since then applicant and his family members are the owners, occupants and in possession of the said property within the knowledge of one and all openly, uninterruptedly and without any protest by the so-called original owners of the land. He further submits that for the sake of argument and without admitting it, if anybody is in possession of the property within the Page 4 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined knowledge of one and all and without any interruption and objection from the original owners for more than 12 years, in that event, as per the statutory provision of adverse possession, he would become the owner and occupant of the said property. He further submits that it is an admitted position of fact that during the period of 40 years, original land owners have never tried to get the possession of the said property by way of filing civil litigation before the competent civil Court and/or challenged the mutation of entry in the name of Saryudasji and subsequently in the name of applicant and his family members by way of preferring any proceedings before the competent revenue authority. He further submits that once the entry was mutated firstly in the name of Saryudasji and subsequently in the name of the applicant and his family members and it was certified, in that event, as per the settled proposition of law, it can safely be said that the complainant and his family members have deemed knowledge about the status, ownership and possession of the property. Despite the said fact, the so-called legal heirs of deceased Shatrugandasji have not initiated any proceedings before any competent authority.
6. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Asim Pandya further submits that if intention of the applicant and Page 5 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined his family members was bad, in that event, they would have disposed of the said property in the name of third party and title of the property could have been changed but since last more than 40 years, the said property is lying in the possession of the family members of the applicant herein, which clearly goes on to show that they had entered into bona fide transaction with the original property owner. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Pandya further submits that nowhere in the entire body of the FIR, complainant has stated as to how he had come to know in the year 2022 that the said property belongs to his grand-father and he is the rightful legal owner of the said property. He has read the FIR and submitted that the charge of accusations levelled in the body of the FIR clearly smacks mala fide intention on the part of the complainant and with an ulterior motive and oblique intention, by creating concocted story, present false FIR has been registered against the applicant and his family members and by doing so, he has foisted criminal liability upon the head of the applicant and his family members. He further submits that it is an admitted position of fact that applicant is not the signatory of the sale deed and not appeared before the revenue authority to identify said Saryudasji. He further submits that in fact as Page 6 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined per the case of the prosecution, role of the present applicant has come in picture after the period of 10 months from the date of mutation of entry in the name of Saryudasji. He further submits that for the sake of arguments and without admitting it, if the allegations levelled against the applicant are to be accepted in its entirety, in that event, the charge of pre-conspiracy has been levelled against the accused persons and therefore prosecution has come with the specific case that before entry was mutated in the name of Saryudasji, present applicant and his family members were in contact with said Saryudasji. However, not a single piece of document is collected by the investigating officer which shows and suggests that present applicant and his family members were in constant touch with said Saryudasji. He further submits that three persons who had identified Saryudasji in presence of revenue officer are passed away and the said fact is clearly found out from the report submitted by the investigating officer before the competent Court. Therefore, as per his humble opinion, no evidence is available on record on the basis of which applicant and his family members can be connected and/or associated with the commission of crime.
7. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Asim Pandya submits Page 7 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined that it is the specific case of the applicant that pursuant to the registration of the FIR, investigation commenced and as soon as applicant has come to know about the registration of the FIR, immediately he rushed to the complainant and settled the dispute with the complainant and as per the terms of settlement they have filed consent quashing petition before this Court. The said petition has not been entertained by this Court and therefore said order is challenged before the Hon'ble Apex Court, where, the complainant has withdrawn his consent, due to which, the said SLP was also withdrawn by the applicant. However, considering the charge of accusations levelled against the applicant in the body of the FIR, the Hon'ble Apex Court has protected the present applicant till 15.08.2025.
8. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Pandya further submits that admittedly there is long delay of 40 years in registering the FIR and there is no prima facie material against the present applicant. He submits that during the interregnum period, the investigating officer concerned has submitted charge-sheet against the co-accused persons. He has produced the copy of compilation of those documents and submitted that during the course of investigation, the investigating officer has recorded the statements of number of witnesses and collected Page 8 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined all the materials. He submits that the entire case of the prosecution hinges upon the documentary evidences and almost all documents have been collected by the investigating officer during the course of investigation. Therefore, custodial interrogation of the applicant is not at all needed. He further submits that the concerned Court has not entertained the bail application of the applicant on one of the grounds that there are antecedents against the applicant. He submits that in fact based upon the same set of allegations number of FIRs have been registered against the present applicant. He submits that total 7 FIRs have been registered against the applicant, out of which, two to three FIRs have been registered within short span of 2 to 3 years and the period of offence mentioned in all those FIRs is between 1980 and 1990, which clearly goes on to show that with mala fide intention to harass the present applicant and with an oblique intention, false and fabricated FIRs have been registered against the applicant by concocting the story. Learned Senior Advocate Mr. Asim Pandya further submits that the parameters and guidelines as regards anticipatory bail have already been laid down by the Hon'ble Apex Court in numerous case laws. He is heavily putting reliance upon the decision rendered by the Hon'ble Apex Court in Page 9 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined the case of Siddharam S. Mhetre v. the State of Maharashtra, reported in (2011) 1 SCC 694 and submitted that as such at the time of entertaining the bail application, the Hon'ble Court need not have to enter into the status of the applicant that he has preferred pre-arrest bail or post-arrest bail because ultimately at the end of the day on the basis of material available on record custodial interrogation of the accused is needed or not is required to be seen. He submits that admittedly the entire case of the prosecution hinges upon the documentary evidence and almost all those documents have been collected by the IO. Thus, considering the aforesaid overall totality of the facts, this is the fit case where the Court may have to exercise discretion in favour of the applicant. In support of his submission, learned Senior Advocate Mr. Pandya has put reliance upon the following case laws:
(1) Siddharam S. Mhetre v. State of Maharashtra, reported in (2011) 1 SCC 694; (2) Maganji S. Thakor v. State of Gujarat, reported in 2025 SCC Online Guj. 3418; (3) Hanubhai Devabhai Saparamar v. State of Gujarat, reported in 2025 SCC Online Guj. 3235; (4) Rakesh Prahladram Joshi v. State of Gujarat rendered in CRMA No.4597 of 2011;
(5) Abdul Hameed v. State of UP, reported in Page 10 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined 2025 SCC Online All. 4046;
(6) Mohd. Wajid v. State of U.P., reported in (2023) 20 SCC 219;
(7) Delhi Race Club Ltd. v. State of U.P., reported in (2024) 10 SCC 690;
(8) Lalit Chaturvedi v. State of U.P., reported in 2024 SCC Online SC 171;
(9) Ankit Mishra v. State of M.P., rendered in SLP (Crl) No.14566 of 2024 (SC); and (10) Ashish v. CBI, Bail Appln. No. 143 of 2022 (Del HC).
9. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Mitesh Amin assisted by learned Public Prosecutor Mr. Hardik Dave and learned APP Mr. Rohan Shah for the respondent - State has objected present application with vehemence and submitted that complainant - Ramkrishnadas Gordhandas Acharya is the grandson of Shatrugandasji, who is the original owner of the property and passed away on 04.02.1951, and as per the statutory provisions of law, after the demise of owner of the property, the said property is required to be mutated in the name of his legal heirs. However, in the instant case, the facts are different and instead of mutation of the property in the name of heirs of the deceased owner, the said property was mutated in the name of altogether a different person i.e. Saryudasji, allegedly on the basis of Panchcase Page 11 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined and statement made by the said Saryudasji before the revenue officer. Thereafter, after about 10 months, the said property was transferred in the name of applicant and his family members. He has drawn the attention of this Court to various documents placed by the applicant along with the memo of the application. He further submits that the FIR is registered on 25.11.2022 against the applicant and others. The co-accused is the real brother of the applicant and he has been apprehended by the investigating officer and released on bail after submission of charge- sheet and that too after a period of 12 months' incarceration, whereas, by way of preferring present application, applicant is seeking to enlarge him on anticipatory bail on the ground that he is not at all involved in the commission of crime. He has referred the statement of witnesses and submitted that in fact during the course of investigation, investigating officer could not be able to find out any person viz. Saryudasji Shatrugandasji. However, during the course of investigation, investigating officer has recorded statement of one Mr. Rambabu, who is the son of one Saryudasji Sadanand, wherein, after verifying the documents alleged to have been signed by Mr. Saryudasji before the revenue authority, he has specifically stated that the signatures made upon the said documents do not Page 12 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined belong to his father, as his father used to sign in Hindi language, whereas, the signature made upon the said documents is in vernacular Gujarati. He submits that thus the said statement made by the son of Saryudasji crystalizes the position that the signatures made upon the documents do not belong to his father and the same is forged one.
10. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin further submits that the said Panchcase was done in presence of three persons and during the interregnum period all those three persons have passed away and therefore statements of those persons have not been recorded by the investigating officer but on the strength of the said document prepared by the revenue officer, entry was mutated in the record of rights in the name of Saryudasji Shatrugandasji and said Saryudasji Shatrugandasji had executed registered sale deed in favour of applicant and his family members and on the strength of the said document, property was transferred in the name of applicant and his family members. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin further submits that complainant is the only son of Gordhandasji and Gordhandasji is the only son of Shatrugandasji i.e. the original owner of the property.
11. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin Page 13 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined submits that during the course of investigation, it is found out that one Janki Jivandasji is the main priest and Shatrugandasji, Saryudasji and other persons are the disciples of said Janki Jivandasji. He further submits that after the execution of registered sale deed by Mr. Saryudasji in favour of applicant and his family members, as per the provisions of the Bombay Land Revenue Code, on the basis of execution of registered sale deed, entry is required to be mutated in the name of the purchaser but as there was some doubt in the mind of the revenue officer, revenue proceedings have been initiated to verify the status of the purchaser and seller as to whether they are agriculturists or not. He submits that as there was no specific bar under Section 63 of the Gujarat Tenancy Act, the entry was mutated in the name of applicant and his family members.
12. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin has referred number of documents and submitted that during the course of investigation, it is found out that somebody has impersonated himself as Saryudasji Shatrugandasji and entry was mutated in his name in the revenue record as if said Saryudasji is the legal heir of Shatrugandasji. However, during the course of investigation, as stated above, the investigating officer has recorded the statement of one Mr. Rambabu, son Page 14 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined of Saryudasji, wherein, he has very categorically stated that his father was not holding any piece of land within the territory of State of Gujarat. Basically, they are belonging to Utter Pradesh and some parcel of land is lying in the State of UP in the name of his grand-father and said land is cultivated by his uncle. He submits that his father passed away in the year 1990 and in the year 1982 he used to go with his father and he is well aware about the fact that his father has never executed any sale deed in favour of anybody. Even his father was not holding any property within the territory of State of Gujarat. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin submits that thus the aforesaid statement of Rambabu crystalizes the position of law that when the father of Rambabu i.e. Saryudasji Sadanand had never executed any document in favor of the applicant and his family members, in that event, somebody else was engaged to carry out the said work. Not only that, he appeared before the revenue officer and mutated entry in his name, despite the fact that, the person of the said name has never been in existence. The entry was mutated and thereafter, the said property is sold out by executing registered sale deed in favour of the applicant and his family members. Thereafter, the revenue Page 15 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined proceedings under the Tenancy Act have been initiated by the concerned Revenue Authority, wherein number of persons have appeared. Therefore, with the sole intent to grab the said property, a well-designed conspiracy has been hatched by all the accused persons.
13. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin further submits that in fact brother of the present applicant has already been arrested and he has extended all kind of non-cooperation to the investigating officer. He flatly refused to give specimen signature to carry out opinion of the handwriting expert. The I.O. concerned was constrained to prefer an application before the Hon'ble Court to get the specimen signature of the accused with the sole intent to obtain opinion of the handwriting expert. The learned AAG further submits that in fact it is the case of the applicant herein that the incident is occurred way back in the year 1982 and at that relevant point of time he was college going boy and he has not signed any document and directly or indirectly he is not connected and/or associated with the commission of crime and second stand taken by the present applicant is that Saryudasji and Shatrugandasji are the disciples of Janki Jivandasji and being the disciples of the particular Guru, as per the practice of that particular religious sect, Guru Page 16 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined used to bequeath his property (movable as well as immovable) to his senior most disciple, and probably the Saryudasji is the senior most disciple, and therefore, the property in question is bequeathed in his favour, which ultimately changed the hands in the name of applicant and his family members. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin submits that he has gone through the contents of the sale deed but nowhere in the entire sale deed, the said story put forward by the applicant is stated. Thus, the said story is an afterthought.
14. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin further submits that bail application of the applicant is also required to be entertained considering the facts that there are so many antecedents against the present applicant, and charge of accusations level against the applicant in all those cases are identical and similar in nature. He further submits that applicant, his brother and other family members are known as land-grabbers and they used to grab lands of innocent and gullible persons, by creating forged and fabricated documents. There are total 7 FIRs registered against the present applicant, out of which, at this juncture, he is putting reliance upon 3 FIRs. In fact, in all the 3 FIRs, the story put forward by the prosecuting agency, crystalizes the position of Page 17 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined fact that the so-called incident is occurred during the period of 1988-1990, and a well- designed sinister plan is orchestrated by all the members of family of the applicant to grab valuable land of innocent and gullible persons. They used to create forged and fabricated Power of Attorney, and on the strength of the said Power of Attorney, they entered into transaction with someone by executing registered sale-deed, and on the basis of the said document, they used to change the title of the property, then the said property would once again be transferred in the name of a cooperative society which was run and functioned by the applicant and his brother. Thereafter, once again, the said property was transferred in the name of another cooperative society which was also directly in control of the applicant and then the said property was once again transferred in the name of housing society and ultimately reached to the land-bank of the applicant and his brother. They would take round-about 10 to 20 years period to complete the entire circle. He submits that during the course of investigation, the Investigating Officer has collected ample evidence which shows that in all those transactions, the amount of consideration is made through cheque. The amount of the so-called cheque was never debited from the account of the Page 18 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined purchaser and it was never credited in the account of the seller, despite the said fact, transactions have taken place and entries were mutated and nobody has raised any objections up until now, and same modus operandi is adopted by the applicant and his brother in number of cases, out of which, 3 cases have come on surface. He has put reliance upon the antecedents and submitted that since last many years, so many offences have been registered against the applicant. He further submits that in fact daughter-in-law of the brother of the applicant has registered one FIR against the applicant's brother and nephew and other relatives. Pursuant to the registration of the said FIR, investigation commenced and brother and nephew of the applicant have apprehended by the investigating officer and at that relevant point of time, with a sole intent to settle the said dispute, applicant herein had kidnapped the daughter-in-law and her mother and they were abducted at a particular place and in the presence of lawyer and other persons, threat was administered, they were coerced and at that relevant point of time, certain documents were executed by obtaining signature of daughter-in- law of the brother of the applicant. The said fact is also fortified from the statements of mother of daughter-in-law as well as daughter-
Page 19 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined in-law of brother of the applicant recorded by the investigating officer recorded in those proceedings. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin submits that he just wants to bring to the notice of this Court about the past conduct and chequered history of the applicant and characteristic of the applicant that he can reach up to any extent to get favourable result. He further submits that looking to the past conduct of the applicant, there are all possible chances that he would administer threat to the witnesses and/or tamper with the evidences, if he would be enlarged on anticipatory bail.
15. Learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin further submits that so far as the issue of delayed registration of FIR is concerned, the said fact is already tested by this Court as well as by the Honourable Apex Court. He submits that immediately after the registration of the FIR, applicant herein has tried to settle the dispute and won the confidence of the complainant and filed consent quashing petition before this Court. However, the said quashing petition has not been entertained by this Court, therefore, SLP came to be preferred before the Honourable Apex Court, wherein, complainant himself has remained present before the Honourable Apex Court and filed an application that he has not authorized any person to appear Page 20 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined on his behalf before the Honourable Supreme Court and he has not given any consent to quash the FIR against the applicant and his family members and therefore the SLP was withdrawn by the applicant. Thus, considering the aforesaid totality of the facts of the present case, this is a fit case where this Honourable Court may not exercise discretionary powers of anticipatory bail in favour of the applicant.
16. Learned advocate Mr. Alok Thakkar appearing on behalf of original complainant has objected present application with vehemence and submitted that in fact as soon as FIR has been registered by the complainant, applicant approached him and tried to settle the dispute. He submits that initially complainant was ready and agreeable to settle the dispute because complainant was made to understand that he has to sign the affidavit for the purpose of reversing the entry of sale and for submitting deed of cancellation but the complainant was never informed that the said affidavit was used in any Court proceedings. The complainant has never given his consent to quash the FIR. He submits that in fact the oral understanding took place between the complainant and applicant could not have been fulfilled by the applicant and therefore complainant had made inquiry about the status of the matter and he came to know that on the strength of the Page 21 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined affidavit of the complainant, applicant has tried to quash the FIR. He further submits that the complainant approached the Honourable Apex Court and he has also filed an application to remove the learned advocate, who was representing him in the Apex Court. The said application has been considered and after considering the material available on record, as the Honorable Apex Court was not inclined to entertain the said petition, the SLP preferred by the applicant has been withdrawn by him. He has adopted other arguments canvassed by learned Additional Advocate General. He, therefore, submits that considering the aforesaid overall facts of the present case, applicant may not be enlarged on bail.
17. Having heard the learned advocates appearing for the parties and perused the materials placed on record, it is found out from the record that on the basis of statement made by one Saryudasji and on the basis of Panchcase, the property in question is mutated in the name of said Saryudasji in the year 1982. It is also found out from the record that three persons have identified said Saryudasji as heir of original owner before the competent Revenue Authority. However, during the interregnum period, all the said three persons have died. It is also found out from the record that after the said property Page 22 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined was mutated in the name of Saryudasji, the applicant and other accused persons have purchased the said property from said Saryudasji after about 10 months from the date of mutation of entry in the name of Saryudasji. It is the case of the complainant that said Saryudasji is not the legal heir of original owner Shatrugandasji and someone, at the instance and under the instructions and guidance of the applicant and his family members, has impersonated himself as Saryudasji. It is also the case of the complainant that complainant is the only son of Gordhandasji and Gordhandasji is the only son of Shatrugandasji i.e. the original owner of the property. It is pertinent to note that the name of the original owner is Shatrugandasji and during the course of investigation, investigating officer came to know that person viz. Saryudasji Shatrugandasji is not in existence. However, investigating officer has recorded the statement of one Mr. Rambabu, who is the son of Saryudasji Sadanand. I have also gone through the statement of said Rambabu, wherein, he has very categorically stated that originally they belong to Utter Pradesh and his father viz. Saryudasji died in the year 1990. His father was not holding any land within the territory of State of Gujarat and after verifying various documents, he has Page 23 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined specifically stated that signatures on those documents do not belong to his father, as his father used to sign in Hindi, whereas, the signatures on the documents are in vernacular Gujarati language and thereupon line is drawn.
18. It is also pertinent to note that after the registration of the FIR, the co-accused, who is the real brother of the applicant, has been apprehended and after submission of charge- sheet, he has been enlarged on bail after 12 months' incarceration. It is the case of the prosecuting agency that he is not extending his cooperation to the investigating officer and flatly refused to give specimen signature to carry out opinion of the handwriting expert. The investigating officer, therefore, was constrained to prefer an application before the concerned Court to get the specimen signature of the accused.
19. It is the case of the applicant herein that the incident is occurred way back in the year 1982 and FIR is filed in the year 2022 i.e. almost after 40 years and complainant has failed to disclose the fact as to how he came to know in the year 2022 that the property belongs to his grand-father. However, it is pertinent to note that immediately after the registration of the FIR, applicant has tried to settle the dispute with the complainant and therefore a petition Page 24 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined for consent quashing has also been preferred before this Court, which was not entertained. The applicant challenged the said order before the Hon'ble Apex Court, wherein, complainant appeared and disclosed the fact that he has not given any consent for quashing of the criminal prosecution against the applicant and others and therefore the said SLP came to be withdrawn by the applicant. Thus, the aspect of delay in registering the FIR is already tested by this Court as well as Hon'ble Apex Court in the quashing petition. It is also the case of the applicant that the possibility of an ultimate conviction is bleak and therefore he may be enlarged on anticipatory bail. However, at the time of deciding the anticipatory bail application, the aspect of possibility of an ultimate conviction after full-fledged trial is not required to be taken into consideration by this Court and the Court is not required to decide the anticipatory bail on the said ground. The only criterion, which is required to be kept in mind by the Court at the time of deciding an application seeking anticipatory bail, is the prima facie involvement of the accused in the commission of crime or not. If the prosecuting agency is in a position to prove prima facie involvement of an accused in the commission of crime, then the Court is not required to look Page 25 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined into other criteria and solely on the basis of prima facie involvement of the accused in the commission of crime, an application seeking anticipatory bail preferred by the accused deserves dismissal. The parameters and criteria for deciding anticipatory bail and regular bail are quite different and distinct and the leniency, which the Court generally shows at the time of deciding regular bail application, is not required to be shown by the Court at the time of deciding anticipatory bail application.
20. It is also the case of the applicant that as per the practice of the particular religious sect, the Guru used to bequeath his property (movable as well as immovable) to his senior most disciple and Saryudasji might be the senior most disciple and therefore the property in question is bequeathed in his name. However, the said fact is not mentioned in the sale deed executed by said Saryudasji in favour of the applicant and his family members, therefore, the said stand taken by the applicant is, in the opinion of this Court, an afterthought. It is also pertinent to note that the seller i.e. Saryudasji is not the owner of the property in question, despite the said fact, he alleged to have executed the registered sale deed in favour of the applicant and other family members. The above stated sequence of events of incident Page 26 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined prima facie seems that the execution of registered sale deed is not genuine one.
21. It is also the case of the applicant that at the time of execution of the sale deed i.e. in the year 1982, applicant was young and it is not the case of the prosecution that applicant has committed forgery of any document and applicant is not directly or indirectly connected and/or associated with the commission of crime. However, learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin has drawn the attention of this Court how the applicant and his family members have orchestrated systematic sinister plan to grab the property of the innocent and gullible persons and by forging the documents, title of the property is transferred in the name of various persons/organizations and ultimately reached to the land bank of the applicant without debiting/crediting the amount of consideration of sale from the so-called purchasers/sellers. In support of the said stand taken by the prosecuting agency, learned Additional Advocate General Mr. Amin has also drawn the attention of this Court to the statements of various witnesses. I have also gone through the said statements. It is the case of the applicant that immediately after the registration of the FIR, applicant has tried to settle the dispute with the complainant and Page 27 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined initially complainant was also agreeable to settle the dispute and therefore a petition for consent quashing is preferred before this Court. However, it is the case of the complainant that he has never given his consent for quashing of the FIR and said fact is also recorded by the Hon'ble Apex Court. Thus, considering the entire materials placed on record and the modus operandi adopted by the accused persons, I am of the prima facie opinion that all the accused persons, in connivance with each other, had hatched a criminal conspiracy and as per preplanned acted in a particular manner and one of the accused persons had impersonated and identified himself and appeared before the Revenue Officer as Saryudasji (who is not the heir of the original owner) and mutated the land of the ownership of Shatrugandasji, who is the grandfather of the complainant, in the name of said Saryudasji though fully knowing well that said Saryudasji is not the owner of the said property and thereafter changed the title of the said property in the name of applicant and his family members. Thus, prima facie, the story put forward by the applicant that he is the bona fide purchaser seems to be fishy and cloud of suspicious activities carried out by the accused and other persons are required to be unraveled and for that purpose custodial interrogation of Page 28 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined the applicant is badly needed. Thus, looking the aforesaid sequence of events of incident coupled with the chequered history and past conduct of the applicant, I am not inclined to exercise discretionary powers of anticipatory bail in his favour. There is no dispute with regard to the ratio laid down by the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case laws upon which reliance is being placed by learned Senior Advocate Mr. Pandya for the applicant. However, considering the facts and circumstances of the present case, those decisions would not be of any help to the applicant.
22. I have also perused the contents of the FIR as well as other corroborative materials in the form of statements of the witnesses and considering the said materials, I am of the opinion that, prima facie, involvement of the applicant in the commission of crime is found out. Though at the stage of deciding bail an elaborate examination of evidence and detailed reasons touching the merit of the case, which may prejudice the accused, should be avoided. Therefore, at this stage of deciding the present application seeking anticipatory bail, without discussing the evidence in detail, I restrict myself to the extent of offering the opinion of prima facie involvement of the applicant in the commission of crime.
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23. It is required to be noted that no doubt this Court has extraordinary powers to protect an innocent person, however, the said power has to be exercised by the Courts with due circumspection. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Sumitha Pradeep Vs. Arun Kumar C.K. & Anr., reported in 2022 SCC OnLine SC 1529 held that merely because custodial interrogation is not required, by itself, could not be a ground to grant anticipatory bail. The first and the foremost thing the Court, while hearing the anticipatory bail application, has to consider is the prima facie case against the accused. The relevant extract of the judgment is reproduced hereinbelow:-
"It may be true, as pointed out by learned counsel appearing for Respondent No.1, that charge-sheet has already been filed. It will be unfair to presume on our part that the Investigating Officer does not require Respondent No.1 for custodial interrogation for the purpose of further investigation. Be that as it may, even assuming it a case where Respondent No.1 is not required for custodial interrogation, we are satisfied that the High Court ought not to have granted discretionary relief of anticipatory bail. We are dealing with a matter wherein the original complainant (appellant herein) has come before this Court praying that the anticipatory bail granted by the High Court to the accused should be cancelled. To put it in other words, the complainant says that the High Court wrongly exercised its discretion while granting Page 30 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined anticipatory bail to the accused in a very serious crime like POCSO and, therefore, the order passed by the High Court granting anticipatory bail to the accused should be quashed and set aside. In many anticipatory bail matters, we have noticed one common argument being canvassed that no custodial interrogation is required and, therefore, anticipatory bail may be granted. There appears to be a serious misconception of law that if no case for custodial interrogation is made out by the prosecution, then that alone would be a good ground to grant anticipatory bail. Custodial interrogation can be one of the relevant aspects to be considered along with other grounds while deciding an application seeking anticipatory bail. There may be many cases in which the custodial interrogation of the accused may not be required, but that does not mean that the prima facie case against the accused should be ignored or overlooked and he should be granted anticipatory bail. The first and foremost thing that the court hearing an anticipatory bail application should consider is the prima facie case put up against the accused. Thereafter, the nature of the offence should be looked into along with the severity of the punishment. Custodial interrogation can be one of the grounds to decline custodial interrogation. However, even if custodial interrogation is not required or necessitated, by itself, cannot be a ground to grant anticipatory bail."
24. Thus, while taking into consideration the ratio laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Siddharam Satlingappa Mhetre as also ratio laid down in other decisions, I have gone through the contents of the FIR, which is placed on record and also considered the affidavit of the investigating officer filed before the Page 31 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined learned Judge concerned opposing the bail application preferred by the applicant. Upon going through the contents of the FIR, it appears that prima facie case is made out against the applicant and material collected so far suggests the involvement of the applicant in the commission of crime.
25. For the foregoing reasons, having regard to the facts and circumstances, peculiar to the instant case, as have been analyzed hereinabove, the applicant has failed to make out a special case for exercise of power to grant anticipatory bail and considering the facts and parameters, necessary to be considered for adjudication of anticipatory bail, this Court does not find any exceptional ground to exercise its discretionary jurisdiction under Section 482 of the BNSS to grant anticipatory bail. More so, investigation is still going on in the present case. It is settled proposition of law that power exercisable under Section 482 BNSS, is somewhat discretionary in character and it is to be exercised with caution in exceptional cases.
26. Hence, the present application seeking anticipatory bail, being devoid of merit, is hereby dismissed. Notice is discharged.
27. Needless to say that the observations and findings made hereinabove are limited to the decision of this pre-arrest bail application, Page 32 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION R/CR.MA/18098/2025 CAV JUDGMENT DATED: 17/09/2025 undefined and shall not influence in any other proceedings arising out of the impugned FIR.
(DIVYESH A. JOSHI,J) LAVKUMAR J JANI Page 33 of 33 Uploaded by LAVKUMAR J JANI(HC00210) on Wed Sep 17 2025 Downloaded on : Thu Sep 18 00:13:00 IST 2025