Raghavendra S/O Basavaraj Malagi Alias ... vs The State Of Karnataka
2025 Latest Caselaw 2270 Kant

Karnataka High Court

Raghavendra S/O Basavaraj Malagi Alias ... vs The State Of Karnataka on 5 August, 2025

Author: S.Vishwajith Shetty

Bench: S.Vishwajith Shetty

                                         -1-
                                                        NC: 2025:KHC-D:9751
                                                CRL.P No. 102320 of 2025


             HC-KAR



                 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA, DHARWAD BENCH
                      DATED THIS THE 5TH DAY OF AUGUST, 2025
                                       BEFORE
                   THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S.VISHWAJITH SHETTY
                      CRIMINAL PETITION NO. 102320 OF 2025
                              (439(CR.PC)/483(BNSS))
            BETWEEN:

            RAGHAVENDRA S/O. BASAVARAJ MALAGI
            @ RAGHAVENDRA MALAGI,
            AGE: 31 YEARS, OCC: NIL,
            R/O: H.NO.1111, D-BLOCK,
            SONIA GANDHI NAGAR, HUBBALLI,
            DIST: DHARWAD-580 001.
                                                               ... PETITIONER
            (BY SRI. IRANAGOUDA K. KABBUR, ADVOCATE)

            AND:

            1.   THE STATE OF KARNATAKA,
                 THROUGH GOKUL ROAD POLICE STATION,
                 R/BY STATE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR,
                 HIGH COURT BENCH, DHARWAD-580 010.
RAKESH
S
            2.   VICTIM,
HARIHAR
                 XXXX.
                                                            ... RESPONDENTS
Location:   (BY SMT. KIRTILATA R. PATIL, HCGP FOR R1;
HIGH            SRI. N.C. KOLLOORI, ADVOCATE FOR R2)
COURT OF
KARNATAKA
                  THIS CRIMINAL PETITION IS FILED UNDER SECTION 439 OF
            CR.P.C. (UNDER SECTION 483 OF BNSS), PRAYING TO PETITION
            MAY BE ALLOWED AND THE PETITIONER/ACCUSED MAY BE
            RELEASED ON REGULAR BAIL, IN SC. NO.5024/2025 (CC
            NO.4108/2024) (CRIME NO.129/2024 GOKUL ROAD P.S.) PENDING
            BEFORE LEARNED I ADDL. DISTRICT AND SESSIONS JUDGE,
            DHARWAD SITTING AT HUBBALLI, FOR THE OFFENCES PUNISHABLE
            UNDER SECTION 384, 376(2)(N), 506 OF IPC, IN THE INTEREST OF
            JUSTICE.
                               -2-
                                           NC: 2025:KHC-D:9751
                                     CRL.P No. 102320 of 2025


HC-KAR



     THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ORDERS THIS DAY, ORDER
IS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER:

                          ORAL ORDER

(PER: THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S.VISHWAJITH SHETTY)

1. Accused in S.C.No.5024/2025 pending before

the Court of I Additional District and Sessions Judge,

Dharwad sitting at Hubballi arising out of Crime

No.129/2024 registered by Gokul Road Police Station,

Hubballi Dharwad District for offences punishable under

Sections 384, 376(2)(n) & 506 of IPC is before this Court

under Section 439 of Cr.P.C, seeking regular bail.

2. Heard learned counsel for the parties.

3. FIR in Crime No.129/2024 was registered by

Gokul Road Police Station, Hubballi Dharwad District

initially for the offences punishable under Sections 323,

384, 376(2)(n) & 506 of IPC against the petitioner herein,

based on the first information dated 20.09.2024 received

from the victim lady, aged about 27 years. During the

course of investigation, the petitioner was arrested on

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21.09.2024 and subsequently remanded to judicial

custody. After completing investigation, charge sheet has

been filed against the petitioner for the aforesaid offences.

His bail application filed before the Jurisdictional Sessions

Court in S.C.No.5024/2025 was rejected on 03.05.2025.

Therefore, he is before this Court.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner having

reiterated the ground in the petition has prayed to allow

the petition.

5. Per contra, learned HCGP for respondent No.1

and learned counsel appearing for respondent No.2 have

strongly opposed the prayer made in the petition. They

submit that, the petitioner is a person with criminal

antecedents and he was earlier convicted for the offence

punishable under Section 302 of IPC. They submit that if

the petitioner is enlarged on bail he may threaten the

prosecution witnesses. Accordingly, they pray to dismiss

the petition.

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6. Perusal of the first information submitted by the

victim lady aged about 27 years would go to show that,

she has completed her MSW post graduation course and

she got acquainted to the petitioner about 8 years prior to

the date of registration of FIR. She has stated that for the

last 7-8 years, she was in love with the petitioner. She has

further stated that at the request of petitioner, she had

given him her gold chain and on 18.02.2018 at about 2.00

a.m, in the midnight he had called her to the terrace of

their house and had sexual intercourse with her.

Subsequently, he continued his act and also had recorded

her private photos and video in his mobile phone and was

threatening of circulating the same in social media.

Therefore, she had given him a sum of Rs.70,000/- and

also a gold chain weighing about 10 grams. In spite of the

same, petitioner allegedly continued to threaten her and

also threatened with dire consequences to the life of her

relatives and parents. She has further alleged that on

31.05.2024 the petitioner had sexual intercourse with her.

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It is under these circumstances, she had approached the

police on 20.09.2024 and based on her first information,

FIR was registered against the petitioner for the offences

punishable under Sections 323, 384, 376(2)(n) & 506 of

IPC

7. During the course of investigation, the

petitioner was arrested on 21.09.2024 and ever since then

he is in custody. Investigation of the case is completed

and charge sheet has been filed. The victim lady was

subjected to medical examination in the present case and

before the doctor, who had medically examined her on

21.09.2024, she has stated about her relationship with the

petitioner from the year 2018 onwards. She has also

stated that the petitioner is a married person and his wife

had left his company. She has stated that the petitioner

was an accused in a murder case and he was in jail for

about 1½ years initially and subsequently he was released

in the year 2022. She has stated that petitioner had

applied for divorce and to dissolve his marriage with his

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wife, he had asked her for money for his divorce, which

she had refused. From the aforesaid statement of the

victim lady made before the doctor, who had examined

her on 21.09.2024 it is apparent that she had the

knowledge that petitioner is a married man and in spite of

that she had continued her relationship with him. It is also

apparent that she knew that the petitioner was an accused

in a murder case and he was on jail for considerable

period of time and after he released from jail, she

continued her relationship with him and also had sexual

intercourse with him in the month of May, 2024.

8. Learned counsel for the petitioner has brought

to the notice of this Court that the petitioner, who was

convicted for the offence punishable under Section 302 of

IPC has been acquitted in the said case by the division

bench of this Court in Crl.A.No.100254/2021 vide

judgment dated 31.05.2022, wherein the order of

judgment and order conviction passed in S.C.No.3/2015

by the Court of I Addl. District & Sessions Judge, Dharwad

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sitting at Hubballi convicting the petitioner for the offence

punishable under Section 302 IPC has been set aside. The

copy of the said judgment passed by the division bench of

this Court has been made available to this Court.

9. Considering the nature of allegation found in

the first information and also the statement of victim lady

made before the medical officer, who had medically

examined her, it appears that relationship between the

parties was a consensual relationship, which continued for

a period of about 6 years and only after the said

relationship had failed the victim lady had approached the

police. The petitioner is in custody in the present case

from 21.09.2024. Investigation of the case is completed

and charge sheet has been filed. Apprehension of learned

counsel for the respondents can be taken care of by

imposing appropriate conditions on the petitioner.

10. Accordingly, the following: