Orissa High Court
Santosh Kumar Rout vs State Of Odisha on 9 May, 2022
IN THE HIGH COURT OF ORISSA AT CUTTACK
CRLA No.360 of 2019
Santosh Kumar Rout .... Appellant/
Petitioner
Mr. P.C. Biswal, Advocate
-versus-
State of Odisha .... Respondent/
Opp. Party
Mr. A.K. Beura,
Addl. Standing Counsel
CORAM:
JUSTICE S.K. SAHOO
ORDER
Order No. 09.05.2022
I.A. No.1423 of 2021
06. This matter is taken up through Hybrid
Arrangement (Video Conferencing/Physical Mode).
This is an application under Section 389 of Cr.P.C.
for grant of bail.
Heard learned counsel for the appellant-petitioner
and learned Counsel for the State.
The appellant-petitioner has been convicted under
sections 307/341/324/34 of the Indian Penal Code and
sentenced to undergo R.I. for a period of seven years
and to pay a fine of Rs.2,000/- (rupees two thousand),
in default, to undergo further R.I. for a period of six
months for the offence under section 307/34 of the
Indian Penal Code and he is further sentenced to pay a
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fine of Rs.100/- (one hundred), in default, to undergo
S.I. for five days for the offence under section 341/34
of the Indian Penal Code and no separate sentence
was awarded for the offence under section 324/34 of
the Indian Penal Code by the learned Addl. Sessions
Judge, Athagarh in S.T. Case No.96 of 2015 vide
judgment dated 17.04.2019.
Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that
the petitioner Santosh Kumar Rout was on bail during
trial and he has never misutilised his liberty and since
the date of the pronouncement of the impugned
judgment by the learned trial Court i.e. 17.04.2019, he
is in judicial custody. He further submitted that three
of the co-accused persons who faced trial along with
the petitioner namely, Dibakar Rout @ Gulu and Upa
@ Upendra Narayan Mohapatra @ Upendra Mohapatra
and Sarat Kumar Swain @ Budu and also found guilty
for similar offences have preferred separate criminal
appeals i.e. CRLA Nos. 313 of 2019, CRLA No. 40 of
2019 and CRLA No.367 of 2019 respectively and they
have been directed to be released on bail by this Court
as per the order dated 29.11.2021 and 14.01.2020. He
further submitted that the evidence of the injured
(P.W.2) indicates that the petitioner was armed with a
lathi at the time of occurrence and he assaulted him
on his leg but the doctor (P.W.11) who examined the
injured did not find any injury on his leg, rather he
// 3 //
found two injuries on the occipital reason which have
been opined to be simple in nature. He further
submitted that there are good chances of success in
the appeal and there is no chance of early hearing of
appeal in the near future and balance of convenience
is in favour of the petitioner and therefore, the bail
application of the petitioner may be favourably
considered.
Learned counsel for the State pointed out from
the impugned judgment that the petitioner and the co-
appellants have been found guilty for the offence
under sections 302 and 149 of the Indian Penal Code
in another case and they have preferred appeal and in
that appeal they have not yet been released on bail.
Learned counsel for the petitioner while not
disputing the said position submitted that since the co-
appellants were also convicted in the case under
section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and they have
been released on bail, on the ground of parity and
equity, the bail application may be favourably
considered.
Considering the submissions made by the learned
counsel for the respective parties, nature of evidence
available on record against the petitioner, the period of
detention of the petitioner in judicial custody, release
of co-convicts on bail in the connected criminal appeals
and absence of any chance of early hearing of appeal
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in the near future and the fact that the petitioner was
on bail during trial, I am inclined to release the
petitioner on bail.
Let the appellant-petitioner be released on bail
pending disposal of the appeal on furnishing bond of
Rs.50,000/- (rupees fifty thousand) with two local
solvent sureties each for the like amount to the
satisfaction of the learned trial Court.
The I.A. is disposed of.
Urgent certified copy of this order be granted on
proper application.
( S.K. Sahoo)
Judge
P
