Allahabad High Court
Mahendra Kumar Vishwakarma vs State Of U.P. And Another on 4 August, 2023
Bench: Shekhar Kumar Yadav
HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT ALLAHABAD
?Neutral Citation No. - 2023:AHC:156410
Court No. - 71
Case :- CRIMINAL MISC ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION U/S 438 CR.P.C. No. - 8170 of 2023
Applicant :- Mahendra Kumar Vishwakarma
Opposite Party :- State of U.P. and Another
Counsel for Applicant :- Rajendra Kumar Singh
Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A.
Hon'ble Shekhar Kumar Yadav,J.
1. Heard Sri Rajendra Kumar Singh, learned counsel for the applicant and learned Additional Government Advocate for the State.
2. This anticipatory bail application (under section 438 Cr.P.C.) has been moved seeking bail in Case Crime No.484 of 2018, under Sections 419, 420, 467, 468, 471 IPC, Police Station- Sigra, District- Varanasi.
3. In brief, the prosecution story is as follows that an FIR was lodged by the plaintiff Dudhnath Prasad at Police Station Sigra to the effect that Jaihind Kumar, Durga Prasad Yadav, Mahendra Kumar Vishwakarma, Dilip Jain along with some other unknown people had prepared forged documents to buy Sky Lark under the group of companies 1. Sky Lark Land Developers & Infrastructure India Ltd. 2. Sky Lark Infracon India Ltd. 3. S.L.D.I. Infracon Ltd. 4. Kulak Marketing Pvt. Ltd. was established for the purpose of cheating and started forgery of valuable security by preparing forgery documents, bond of refund of money and fictitious bond of ownership of land by the company. The aim of all the above was to obtain the principal amount from the simple people of the country by forging the bond and giving fraudulent assurance of interest, dividend and land. All the above persons entered into a criminal conspiracy and opened an office at Prem Complex, Sigra, Varanasi, in front of Bharat Mata Mandir and fabricated the delivery of the security by giving a settlement letter or receipt acknowledging the receipt of money from several people and obtaining crores of rupees from all the banks of Varanasi. They closed the office and ran away. All these people pretended to be bankers and obtained crores of rupees from the people and looted the said crores of rupees. It is alleged that the applicant along with other co-accused have cheated the public by giving wrong information through their employees that after five years after investing the money will get the land or will get the price of the land and ran away after grabbing the money. All these people have committed economic crime in the Mauza located at Arazi No. 372. 355, Bhikharipur Kala, Pargana Dhisua, Tehsil Machli City, District Jaunpur and Village Dhuniyan, Pargana Khairagarh, Tehsil Khairagarh, District Agra, Village Deori Kat, Pargana Bahr, Tehsil Purwal, District Sonbhadra, bought land in the name of his company by taking money from people and neither did it. These people are not giving money or giving land. It is alleged that against the aforesaid accused person an FIR has already been registered at Police Station Fotwali Civil Lines, Allahabad bearing Case Crime No.86 of 2018, under Sections 406, 419, 420 IPC. The forged corporate identification numbers of these persons are U70102UP2011PCL045193, U70100MP2010 PCL023689 U45200DL12013 PCL256693. Accused have received money from more than 100 people in the form of investment for forgery of valuable securities and have been given settlement sheets, all the victims have documentary evidence against the said people in their possession. The accused have committed the offense of criminal breach of trust by posing as investment bankers. There have many accounts in the HDFC Bank and Orient Bank of Commerce in Varanasi, from which movement of huge amount can be disclosed. From 02.06.2010, these people were committing crimes in the area of ??Thana Sigra, Varanasi.
4. Learned counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant is innocent and he has been falsely implicated in the present case with the false and frivolous allegations and the applicant has not committed such offence. He submitted that no specific role has been assigned against the applicant. He submitted that the applicant has never held the position of director and member of the board in the said company and no forged documents has been recovered from the applicant. The applicant has criminal history of one case, which has been explained in paragraph 26 of the affidavit. Learned counsel for the applicant further submitted that applicant has apprehension of imminent arrest and in case, applicant is released on anticipatory bail, he will not misuse the liberty and would co-operate with the trial.
5. Learned A.G.A. opposed the prayer for anticipatory bail of the applicant and has submitted that the applicant is named in the FIR including other co-accused persons. He further submitted that the applicant along with the co-accused, on the basis of fake documents, in the name of investing money in the land of various people in the fake company have grabbed crores of rupees, therefore, keeping view the seriousness of the allegations made against the applicant, he is not entitled to grant of anticipatory bail. The apprehension of the applicant is not founded on any material on record. Only on the basis of imaginary fear, anticipatory bail cannot be granted.
6. The Apex Court in judgment passed in the case of P.Chidambaram vs. Directorate of Enforcement (Criminal Appeal No.1340/10 dated 05.09.2019) has held that grant of anticipatory bail particularly in economic offences would definitely hamper the effective investigation. In the cases of corruption the custodial interrogation of an accused is necessary because he/she may provide the information leading to discovery of material fact and relevant information.
7. Having regard to the material available on record and the nature of allegation against the applicant, in the considered opinion of this Court, it is not a fit case in which the applicant can be extended the benefit of anticipatory bail.
8. Accordingly, this application under Section 438 Cr.P.C. is dismissed. Applicant is advised to move regular bail application before the appropriate forum and if such application is given, the court below shall consider and disposed of the bail application expeditiously in accordance with law.
Order Date :- 4.8.2023
Krishna*
