Akshay S/O Digambar Gawande vs State Of Mah. Thr. Pso Ps Digras Tq. ...
2021 Latest Caselaw 7110 Bom

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                  IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY,
                            NAGPUR BENCH, NAGPUR.


                               CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 119/2021


          Akshay S/o Digambar Gawande,
          Age about 26 years, Occ. Labour,
          R/o. Tuptakli,Tq. Digras,
          Dist. Yavatmal                                                .... APPELLANT

                                       // VERSUS //

 1]       State of Maharashtra,
          Through Police Station Officer,
          Police Station Digras,
          Tq. Digras Dist. Yavatmal

 2]       Pooja Laxman Deokar,
          Aged about 24 years, Occ. Nil,
          R/o. Tuptakli, Tq. Digras,
          Dist. Yavatmal                                          .... RESPONDENT(S)

  *******************************************************************
                 Shri A.V. Band, Advocate for the appellant
              Ms. Shamsi Haider, APP for the respondent no. 1
  *******************************************************************

                           CORAM : Z.A.HAQ & AMIT B. BORKAR, JJ.

MAY 04, 2021

JUDGMENT : (PER:- AMIT B. BORKAR, J.)

1] Heard.

 2]               ADMIT.



 3]               This is an appeal under Section 14-A of the Scheduled Castes

and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (for short "the

Act of 1989") challenging the order dated 11/02/2021 passed by the

Additional Sessions Judge, Darwha in Criminal Bail Application No. 07/2021

Judgment 2 apeal119.21.odt

in relation to Crime No. 989/2020 registered with the respondent no. 1 -

Police Station for the offences punishable under Sections 376(2)(n), 323,

504 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code and Sections 3(1)(r), 3(1)(s) and 3(1)

(w) of the Act of 1989.

4] The first information report came to be registered against the

appellant with the accusations that the appellant committed forcible sexual

intercourse with the respondent no. 2 on the promise of marriage from

30/06/2015 till 20/12/2020. It is alleged that though the appellant agreed

before the respectable people of the village to marry with the respondent

no. 2, subsequently, the appellant refused to marry with the respondent no. 2

on the ground that the respondent no. 2 belongs to Scheduled Caste. The

appellant came to be arrested on 24/01/2021. The appellant therefore filed

an application under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure seeking

regular bail. The said application came to be rejected by the impugned order

dated 11/02/2021.

5] The appellant has therefore filed the present appeal. This Court

on 09/03/2021 issued notices to the respondents and in the meantime

directed release of the appellant on provisional bail subject to the conditions

stated in the said order. The respondent no. 1 - Investigating Agency has

filed reply stating that there was relationship between the appellant and the

respondent no. 2 and the appellant repeatedly committed sexual intercourse

against the wishes of the respondent no. 2. It is stated that due to their

physical relationship, the respondent no. 2 became pregnant twice. It is

Judgment 3 apeal119.21.odt

alleged that the mother of the appellant abused the respondent no. 2 - victim

in the name of her caste and threatened that she will consume poison if the

respondent no. 2 insists to marry the appellant. It is stated that the

Investigating Agency has recorded the statements of the witnesses which

prima-facie show involvement of the appellant in the offences alleged against

him.

6] The respondent no. 2 is served with the notice of this appeal but

she has neither appeared personally or through Advocate.

7] We have carefully considered the allegations in the first

information report and have gone through the impugned order. On careful

scrutiny of the first information report, it appears that the appellant was in

relationship with the respondent no. 2 for period of more than 5 years before

lodging of the first information report. The appellant was arrested on

24/01/2021. The appellant is aged about 26 years and the respondent no. 2

is aged about 24 years. There is no allegation in the first information report

nor the material produced before this Court prima facie shows that the

appellant made false promise of marriage at the inception of relationship.

The appellant has stated that he has no criminal antecedents to his discredit.

The appellant was granted provisional bail by the order of this Court dated

09/03/2021. The respondents have not been able to point out that the

appellant has misused the liberty granted to him. We are therefore satisfied

that the order granting provisional bail to the appellant deserves to be

confirmed.

  Judgment                                  4                                apeal119.21.odt




 8]               Hence, the following order:-



                  (a)          The order dated 11/02/2021 passed in Criminal

Bail Application No. 07/2021 by the Additional Sessions Judge,

Darwha is quashed and set aside.

(b) The order of this Court dated 09/03/2021 granting

provisional bail to the appellant is hereby confirmed on the

same terms and conditions.

The appeal is allowed in the above terms.

CRIMINAL APPLICATION (APPA) NO. 180/2021

In view of the disposal of the Criminal Appeal No. 119/2021,

this application praying for grant of temporary bail does not survive. It is

disposed accordingly.

                   (JUDGE)                                    (JUDGE)




 ANSARI