Suprabhat Mukherjee vs Unknown
2021 Latest Caselaw 1542 Cal

24.02.2021 Item no.04 Court No.1

(Via Video Conference)

C.R.A. No.648 of 2016 With I. A. CRAN 2 of 2018 (Old CRAN 2358 of 2018)

In the matter of: Suprabhat Mukherjee

.... Appellant/ Petitioner Mr. Saryati Dutta, Mr. Sanjib Kumar Dan, ...for the Appellants

Mr. Rana Mukheree, Ld. APP Mr. N.P. Agarwal ...for the State

Mr. Rana Mukherjee, Learned Additional Public Prosecutor

who is present in Court is requested to represent the State along

with Mr. N.P. Agarwal. The appointment of Mr. Mukherjee should

be regularized.

In this application filed by the appellant for suspension of

sentence and grant of bail pending disposal of the appeal arising

out of the Judgment and Order dated September 9, 2016 passed by

the Court of Additional District and Sessions Judge, First Court,

Suri, Birbhum in Special (A) Case No.8 of 2013 arising out of

Mayureswar P.S. Case No.48 of 2013 dated 18.03.2013 whereby

the appellant has been found guilty for having committed offence

under Section 376(2)(i) of the Indian Penal Code and has been

sentenced to suffer rigorous imprisonment for ten years and to pay

fine of Rs.20,000/-, in default to suffer further imprisonment for

six months.

The prosecution case is that on March 18, 2013, at about

10:30 a.m. the father of the victim girl went to bring back his wife

from her place of work at an Angawanwari Center leaving his two

daughters including the victim girl (about six years old) at home.

Taking advantage of no elders being in the house, the

accused/appellant, a neighbor, took away the victim girl to his

house by promising to give her toys and committed rape upon her

at his house. After returning from the place of work, the mother of

the victim heard that the accused had taken the victim from their

house. She went to the house of the accused and found that the

victim was crying and lying in a cot without any clothes on. On the

same date at about 18:05 hours the father of the victim girl lodged

a written complaint resulting in initiation of the Sessions Case

against the accused which ultimately ended in his conviction.

We have heard Learned Counsel for the parties. We have

sifted the evidence on record and in particular the evidence of PW-1

(father of the victim girl), PW-2 (the victim girl), PW-3 (mother of the

victim girl), PW-4 (the Doctor who examined the accused at

Rampurhat Health District Hospital) and PW-14 (the Doctor who

examined the victim girl and gave medical report). We are of the

view that the quality of the legal evidence and assimilation of the

evidence by the Learned Trial Judge is such that it cannot be said

that the appellant has no reasonable chance of succeeding in the

appeal.

More crucially, the appellant has been in custody for about

eight (8) years since his arrest following the incident on March 18,

2013. He also does not appear to be having any past history of

conviction or being involved in any criminal case. The Judgment

impugned directs that the period of detention already undergone by

the convict would be set off against the term of imprisonment

handed down by the convicting Court. Thus, the appellant has

served almost eight (8) years out of the ten (10) years imprisonment

imposed on him.

In the aforesaid facts and circumstances, following the

principles laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of

Kashmira Singh v. State of Punjab: (1977) 4 SCC 291 coupled

with the fact that there is no reasonable chance of an early hearing

or disposal of the appeal and also on an overall prima facie

appraisal of the evidence on record, we are of the considered view

that the appellant has made out a case for being enlarged on bail

upon suspension of the sentence imposed on him, pending disposal

of the appeal.

Accordingly, the appellant shall be released on bail upon

furnishing a bond of Rs.10,000/- (Rupees Ten thousand only) with

two sureties of like amount each, one of whom must be a local

surety, to the satisfaction of Learned Chief Judicial Magistrate,

Birbhum at Suri on condition that he shall report to the Officer-in-

Charge of the concerned Police Station once a month till the

disposal of this appeal unless otherwise ordered. The appellant

shall be present or be represented at the hearing of the appeal.

Paper Books be prepared within four weeks from the date of

receipt of lower court records.

Let the appeal be listed for final hearing as soon as paper

books are ready.

The application being C.R.A.N. 2358 of 2018 is allowed.

Urgent Photostat Certified copy of this order, if applied for, be

supplied expeditiously after complying with all necessary legal

formalities.

(Thottathil B. Radhakrishnan, C.J.)

(Arijit Banerjee, J.)