The Allahabad High Court has ruled that an accused declared absconding under Section 82 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) is not entitled to the protection of anticipatory bail.
Justice Gautam Chaudhary made this observation while rejecting the anticipatory bail application of a Kanpur Nagar Parishad member accused of forging signatures and facilitating the registration of land through fabricated documents, which were later verified in a report by the Lekhpal. The Court clarified that its order was confined to the question of bail and did not touch upon the merits of the allegations.
The case stems from an FIR lodged at Kanpur Nagar Kotwali concerning the fraudulent sale of land using forged papers. Counsel for the applicant argued that he had no direct role in the transaction, asserting that he merely verified the signatures of his relatives and was willing to cooperate with the investigation. On this basis, it was submitted that he deserved anticipatory bail.
Opposing the plea, the complainant’s counsel relied on a Supreme Court precedent, stressing that once proclamation proceedings under Section 82 CrPC are initiated, an absconding accused loses the right to anticipatory bail. Accepting this contention, and after hearing the State and the complainant, the Court declined to extend relief, holding that the petitioner’s abscondence was sufficient ground to deny his application.
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