Nitish Kumar Rai vs The State Of Bihar
2021 Latest Caselaw 729 Patna

          IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA
                 CRIMINAL MISCELLANEOUS No. 79094 of 2019
           Arising Out of PS Case No.-42 Year-2019 Thana- MAHILA PS District- Buxar
     ======================================================

Nitish Kumar Rai, aged about 29 years, Male, Son of Late Jhunnu Rai, Resident of Village - Mohanpura, PS- Nonhara, District - Gajipur (UP).

... ... Petitioner/s Versus

1. The State of Bihar

2. Anuradha Rai @ Anuradha Kumari, Daughter of Sri Shiv Prakash Narayan, Wife of Nitish Kumar, Resident of Village - Mohanpura, PS- Nonhara, District - Gajipur (UP) Presently residing at Sohan Patti (Jai Prakash Nagar) Ward no. 33, PS- Town thana Buxar, District - Buxar.

... ... Opposite Party/s ====================================================== Appearance :

     For the Petitioner/s            :        Mr. Bishnu Kant Dubey, Advocate
     For the State                   :        Mr. Arun Kumar Pandey, APP
     For the Opposite Party No. 2    :        Dr. Kamal Deo Sharma, Advocate

====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE AHSANUDDIN AMANULLAH ORAL JUDGMENT Date : 08-02-2021

Heard Mr. Bishnu Kant Dubey, learned counsel for the

petitioner; Mr. Arun Kumar Pandey, learned Additional Public

Prosecutor (hereinafter referred to as the 'APP') for the State and

Dr. Kamal Deo Sharma, learned counsel for the opposite party no.

2.

2. The petitioner apprehends arrest in connection with

Buxar Mahila Thana Case No. 42 of 2019 dated 04.08.2019,

instituted under Sections 498A, 406/34 of the Indian Penal Code

and 3/4 of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961.

3. The Court initially had tried for Mediation but the

same had failed and finally on 19.01.2021, the petitioner and the

opposite party no. 2 and also her daughter and father had Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.79094 of 2019 dt.08-02-2021

appeared. Upon interacting with them, the Court had recorded that

the petitioner appears to be under great stress. However, he

created an impression before the Court that he was ready to give

the relationship a chance. On that day, the Court had also recorded

that the opposite party no. 2 had taken a categorical stand that

there may have been some misgivings in her mind but now she

was unconditionally ready to go and live with the petitioner and

such stand was also taken before the Court by her father who was

even ready to apologize for whatever mistake may have occurred

either on his part or on the part of his daughter or his son.

4. The Court would record that on that day also, it was

the demeanor and manner in which the opposite party no. 2 and

her father had addressed the Court which made it clear that they

were doing it as they wanted the relationship to be restored being

in a position where they could not bargain and thus, had totally

surrendered. The Court, to give some boost to the petitioner, had

observed certain things in Court during such interaction.

5. Today also the Court has interacted with the parties.

After detailed interaction, the Court has no hesitation to record

that in the view of the Court, there appears to be serious lack of

bona fide on the part of the petitioner. From whatever interaction

the Court has had with him, it is clear that the petitioner does not Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.79094 of 2019 dt.08-02-2021

have a clean intention and further that all what he had stated

before the Court and the dramatic manner in which he had tried to

address the Court was only to get sympathy of the Court and

nothing else. Thus, it became clear to the Court that its efforts to

genuinely settle a matrimonial dispute, more so, in view of the

fact that there was a minor girl daughter born out of the wedlock,

such exercise would not bear any result primarily because of the

conduct of the petitioner.

6. Be that as it may, as the Court is hearing an

application on behalf of the petitioner only on the limited point as

to whether he should be granted pre-arrest bail in the present case,

the Court called upon learned counsel to address on merits.

7. The allegation against the petitioner is that he along

with his family members, soon after marriage, has started

demanding for household articles and the father of the opposite

party no. 2 had purchased the same including TV, fridge, air

conditioner, washing machine, bed, sofa etc. costing about Rs.

1,10,000/- and the father had also given gifts at the time of

marriage of about Rs. 25 lakhs, household articles worth Rs. 2.5

lakhs and ornaments of Rs. 3 lakhs at the time of bidai. It is

further alleged that when the paternal aunt of the petitioner came

to Delhi, upon her instigation, the petitioner and his younger Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.79094 of 2019 dt.08-02-2021

brother started torturing her and also abusing her and had also

snatched her ATM card and the opposite party no. 2 not disclosing

the password, the petitioner had broken the ATM card and mobile

and had also assaulted her and when she was ill, they did not

provide any medical facility and has demanded that her father

purchase one flat in Delhi and only then she would be given

respect and allowed to stay. The allegation further is that in the

meantime, the opposite party no. 2 became pregnant and when the

due date was approaching, the accused sent her to their hometown

Gazipur from Delhi and on 28.06.2017 at Sadar Hospital at

Gazipur, a female child was born but neither the petitioner nor his

mother nor his younger brother came to see the child which forced

the opposite party no. 2 to go to Buxar with her father and when

she came to Delhi, the behaviour of the accused was very

aggressive towards her and she was kept hungry and thirsty and

finally her father and two brothers and another person came to

Delhi on 10.03.2019 and despite efforts to settle the matter, as the

father of the opposite party no. 2 expressed his inability to

purchase him a flat as dowry, despite twice panchayati taking

place, the efforts failed and on 18.03.2019, she was forcibly

brought from Delhi to her parents' house at Buxar along with her

baby and told that she would be divorced.

Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.79094 of 2019 dt.08-02-2021

8. Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the

allegations are false as her behaviour was totally unacceptable

right from the beginning because she did not want the petitioner to

live with his mother. It was further submitted that because the

father of the opposite party no. 2 is an Advocate in the Civil Court

at Buxar, she is taking advantage of the status and torturing the

petitioner and his entire family members. Learned counsel

submitted that such behaviour forced him to file a divorce suit

before the Principal Judge, Family Court, Patiala House at Delhi

on 10.04.2019 and when notice was issued on 11.04.2019 and also

received by opposite party no. 2 on 05.05.2019, she had filed a

transfer case before the Hon'ble Supreme Court. It was submitted

that in such background it is clear that just because the petitioner

had filed a divorce suit at Delhi, the present false criminal case

has been instituted. Learned counsel submitted that the petitioner

had tried his best to reconcile the matter but the opposite party no.

2 was belligerent and even till recently, the opposite party no. 2

and her family members did not behave properly with the

petitioner and his family members.

9. Learned APP submitted that there is clear allegation

of demand of dowry and torture and also the attitude of the Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.79094 of 2019 dt.08-02-2021

petitioner both during Mediation and before this Court clearly

indicates that the fault is more on his part.

10. Learned counsel for the opposite party no. 2

submitted that the petitioner is trying to gain sympathy of the

Court by showing himself as the victim. It was submitted that the

marriage of the petitioner itself was initially held as he had

misrepresented himself to be a Chartered Accountant working in a

private form at Delhi and the take away salary was over Rs.

38,000/-. It was submitted that his visiting card as also a

certificate of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India

clearly indicates that he is a qualified Chartered Accountant and,

thus, his plea that he is not earning much is totally false. It was

submitted that had the father of the opposite party no. 2 misused

his position, there would have been a spate of litigation right from

the beginning but because being the father of a girl and there

being a grandchild and also understanding the social ground

realities, he had acted with restraint and had in fact, counselled the

daughter for rapprochement which she has tried, as in the

Mediation as also this Court, she has taken the categorical stand

that she is ready to go and live in the matrimonial home without

any condition. Learned counsel submitted that the divorce case

has finally been transferred to Sasaram in Bihar. Learned counsel Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.79094 of 2019 dt.08-02-2021

submitted that the petitioner has tried to show everything in a

distorted manner before the authorities as also this Court and

when the Court gave him an opportunity, he gave the impression

that he would do so with open mind but he seems to have acted

only to create an impression so that the Court may grant

indulgence to him. Learned counsel submitted that the father of

the opposite party no. 2 coming from a reasonably good ground, it

is obvious that he would have spent the maximum, as per his

capacity, on the marriage and would have also given gifts and

money to his daughter and, thus, there is nothing incongruous or

exaggerated about the same.

11. Having considered the submissions of learned

counsel for the parties, the Court again called upon learned

counsel and specifically asked them as to whether any points the

Court had missed to record and they would like to further submit

for consideration, learned counsel for the parties submitted that

whatever has been submitted by them has been recorded by the

Court and they had no further submission to add.

12. Having finally considered the facts and

circumstances of the case and submissions of learned counsel for

the parties, at the very outset, the Court would indicate that from

the interaction it had with the petitioner on 19.01.2021 and even Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.79094 of 2019 dt.08-02-2021

today, the Court finds that he lacks bona fide. All the pleas raised

by him before the Court appears to be either imaginary or

untenable. Even his behaviour before the Court appears to be only

to portray him as being the adversely affected party i.e., the

victim. The Court had even gone to the extent of counselling him

on the last occasion, and had hoped that at least by his behaviour,

that he would genuinely reconsider the whole issue, but today

coming up with things which the Court finds to be even childish

and purely imaginary, the Court can only express its opinion that

he has, for reasons best known to him, taken a very rigid stand and

even levelled allegation which the Court is not recording as the

same were not in good taste, that too, from a husband, more so,

against the wife, who is the mother of his minor daughter. Even

with regard to the future prospect of the daughter, when the Court

interacted with him, there was nothing which indicated that he had

any sympathy or was ready to discharge the obligation cast upon a

father. Coming to the issue of there being misrepresentation at the

time of marriage, the Court, before which all facts are not there

and it is also not required to go into such facts, especially in these

proceedings, can only broadly observe that a well to do father

would obviously not marry his daughter to a person who is

earning a meager amount or with whom the daughter may not Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.79094 of 2019 dt.08-02-2021

have a very pleasant life due to fund crunch, which clearly

indicates that there must have been reasons for the opposite party

no. 2 and her father to believe that the petitioner was earning a

good amount and had the capacity to properly maintain the

daughter and take care of her. Moreover, it is very clear that the

father of the opposite party no. 2, being an Advocate fully knew

the consequences of couples fighting with each other which leads

to destruction of families, has exercised restrain and not taken any

precipitative action against the petitioner, both being aware of the

law as also being in the father of a daughter who had a minor

child, especially in the prevailing social ground realities.

13. In such background, when the Court had put a direct

question to the petitioner as to what was the reason a wife would

leave her husband, especailly when there was a minor daughter,

knowing that she had no other door open, he had absolutely no

reply to the same. Again, when the Court put a query to him as to

whether his stand was that the opposite party no. 2 was suffering

from some mental ailment, again the petitioner could not come up

even with one instance to indicate that she was not mentally fit to

live with him as his wife. Thus, finally when the Court put a query

for giving one good reason why the wife would take such an Patna High Court CR. MISC. No.79094 of 2019 dt.08-02-2021

extreme step, at the cost of risking her future and that of her child,

again the petitioner remained silent.

14. Having considered the matter in its entirety and

taking an overall view, for the purposes of consideration of the

present application, the Court finds that it cannot be said that the

allegations are exaggerated, misplaced, much less, false.

15. Thus, in the background of the discussions made

hereinabove, the Court is not inclined to grant pre-arrest bail to the

petitioner.

16. Accordingly, the application stands dismissed.

17. The interim protection granted to the petitioner vide

order dated 12.12.2019, stands withdrawn.

(Ahsanuddin Amanullah, J.)

P. Kumar

AFR/NAFR U T