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Kerala High Court
Harish vs State Of Kerala on 23 February, 2026
Author: Kauser Edappagath
Bench: Kauser Edappagath
2026:KER:16127
BAIL APPL. NO. 891 OF 2026
1
IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
PRESENT
THE HONOURABLE DR. JUSTICE KAUSER EDAPPAGATH
MONDAY, THE 23RD DAY OF FEBRUARY 2026 / 4TH PHALGUNA, 1947
BAIL APPL. NO. 891 OF 2026
CRIME NO.708/2025 OF KASABA POLICE STATION, PALAKKAD, PALAKKAD
AGAINST THE ORDER/JUDGMENT DATED IN CRMC NO.4995 OF 2025 OF
DISTRICT COURT & SESSIONS COURT / RENT CONTROL APPELLATE AUTHORITY
, PALAKKAD
PETITIONER/S:
HARISH
AGED 56 YEARS
S/O ACHUTHAN, VILLA NO. 11, USHUS VICTORIA,
PRIYADARSHINI, NAGAR GATE 2, KODUTHUNTHIRAPULLY,
PALAKKAD, PIN - 678018
BY ADVS.
SRI.NAVANEETH.N.NATH
SMT.ABHIRAMI S.
SHRI.ABDUL LATHEEF P.M.
SMT.KRUPA SAJI
RESPONDENT/S:
STATE OF KERALA,
REPRESENTED BY THE PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF
KERALA, PIN - 682031
SRI M C ASHI (SR PP)
THIS BAIL APPLICATION HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON
23.02.2026, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING:
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BAIL APPL. NO. 891 OF 2026
2
ORDER
This application is filed under Section 482 of the
Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short, BNSS),
seeking pre-arrest bail.
2. The applicant is the accused No.3 in Crime
No.708/2025 of Kasaba Police Station, Palakkad District. The
offences alleged are punishable under Sections 316(2), 318(4)
and 351(2) read with Section 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya
Sanhita, 2023 (for short, BNS).
3. The prosecution case, in short, is that during the
period from 04.12.2022 to 18.06.2025, the applicant, in
concert with other accused persons, persuaded the de facto
complainant to invest money in cryptocurrency trading on the
assurance of a 9% return, thereby committing the offences of
cheating and criminal breach of trust and occasioning a
cumulative loss of ₹1,02,74,200/-. It is further alleged that,
upon the complainant seeking the repayment of her money
and the return of her gold ornaments, the accused issued
threats, warning that she would be deprived of her assets and
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BAIL APPL. NO. 891 OF 2026
that she and her family would be falsely implicated in a
criminal case. Accordingly, the applicant is alleged to have
committed the aforesaid offences.
4. I have heard Sri.Navaneeth.N.Nath, the learned
counsel for the applicant and Sri.M.C Ashi, the learned Senior
Public Prosecutor. Perused the case diary.
5. The learned counsel for the applicant submitted that
the applicant is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the
above crime. The counsel further submitted that no materials
are on record to connect the applicant with the alleged crime;
hence, he is entitled to bail. The learned Senior Public
Prosecutor, on the other hand, submitted that the alleged
incident occurred as part of the applicant's intentional
criminal acts, and if he is released on bail at this stage, it will
affect the course of the investigation.
6. The main allegation is against accused No.1. A
reading of the First Information Statement would show that
amount was transferred to the account of the applicant as
well, as directed by accused No.1. Moreover, it is seen that
accused No.1 has returned Rs.39,93,000/- to the defacto
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BAIL APPL. NO. 891 OF 2026
complainant. The applicant does not have any criminal
antecedents. Considering the allegations made against the
applicant, his custodial interrogation seems unnecessary. For
these reasons, I find this to be an appropriate case to grant
pre-arrest bail to the applicant.
In the result, the application is allowed on the
following conditions:-
(i) The applicant shall be released on bail in the event
of his arrest on executing a bond for Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees
One lakh only) with two solvent sureties for the like sum each
to the satisfaction of the arresting officer/investigating officer,
as the case may be.
(ii) The applicant shall fully cooperate with the
investigation, including subjecting himself to the deemed
police custody for discovery, if any, as and when demanded.
(iii) The applicant shall appear before the investigating
officer between 10.00 a.m. and 11.00 a.m. every Saturday until
further orders. He shall also appear before the investigating
officer as and when required.
(iv) The applicant shall not commit any offence of a
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BAIL APPL. NO. 891 OF 2026
like nature while on bail.
(v) The applicant shall not attempt to contact any of
the prosecution witnesses, directly or through any other
person, or in any other way try to tamper with the evidence or
influence any witnesses or other persons related to the
investigation.
(vi) The applicant shall not leave the State of Kerala
without the permission of the trial Court.
(vii) The application, if any, for deletion/modification of
bail conditions or cancellation of bail on the grounds of
violating the bail conditions shall be filed at the jurisdictional
court.
Sd/-
DR. KAUSER EDAPPAGATH
JUDGE
SJ
2026:KER:16127
BAIL APPL. NO. 891 OF 2026
APPENDIX OF BAIL APPL. NO. 891 OF 2026
PETITIONER ANNEXURES
Annexure-A A TRUE COPY OF THE FIR IN CRIME NO. 708/2025
DATED 23-10-2025
Annexure - B A TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER PASSED BY THE
HON'BLE SESSIONS COURT, PALAKKAD DIVISION IN
CRIMINAL M.C. NO. 4995/2025 DATED 20-11-2025
Annexure - C A TRUE COPY OF THE ORDER PASSED BY THIS
HONORABLE COURT DATED 31-01-2026 IN BAIL
