[Cites 4, Cited by 0]

Rajasthan High Court - Jodhpur

Ramesh Kumar vs State Of Rajasthan (2026:Rj-Jd:7523) on 10 February, 2026

Author: Farjand Ali

Bench: Farjand Ali

[2026:RJ-JD:6817]

      HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN AT
                       JODHPUR
                S.B. Criminal Writ Petition No. 229/2026

1.       Altaf Bano W/o Late Yunus Khan, Aged About 56 Years, R/
         o     Chimpon-Ka-Mauhall,                Behind        Sunaron-Ki-Bagechi,
         Gangashahar Road, Bikaner. Raj
2.       Javed Khan Panwar S/o Late Yunus Khan, Aged About 37
         Years,     R/o      Chimpon-Ka-Mauhall,                Behind     Sunaron-Ki-
         Bagechi, Gangashahar Road, Bikaner. Raj
3.       Imran Khan S/o Late Yunus Khan, Aged About 37 Years,
         R/o    Chimpon-Ka-Mauhall, Behind Sunaron-Ki-Bagechi,
         Gangashahar Road, Bikaner. Raj
4.       Foroj Khan S/o Gulam Fareed, Aged About 50 Years, R/o
         Chimpon-Ka-Mauhall,                   Behind           Sunaron-Ki-Bagechi,
         Gangashahar Road, Bikaner. Raj
                                                                         ----Petitioners
                                         Versus
1.       State Of Rajasthan, Through The Secretary, Department
         Of Home Affairs, Govt. Of Rajasthan, Jaipur. Raj.
2.       The Director General Of Police, Jaipur (Raj)_
3.       The Inspector Genera Of Police, Jaipur. Raj.
4.       The Superintendent Of Police, Bikaner. Raj.
5.       The S.h.o., P.s. Kotgate, Bikaner. Raj.
6.       Sanjay Bothra, (R.p.s.) At Present Posted As Dysp, Traffic
         Police, Ajmer. Raj.
                                                                      ----Respondents


For Petitioner(s)              :     Mr. Sourav Shekhar
For Respondent(s)              :     Mr. N.S. Chandawat, Dy.G.A.
                                     Mr. Dhirendra Singh Shekhawat, SHO,
                                     PS Kotgate, Bikaner.



                HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE FARJAND ALI

Order

06/02/2026

1. The present Criminal Writ Petition filed under Articles 226 &

227 of the Constitution of India arises from a protracted pattern of

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illegality, abuse of official authority, and sustained intimidation,

culminating in a grave and imminent threat to the life and

personal liberty of the petitioners.

2. Briefly stated the facts of the case in the year 2016, the

family members of Petitioner No.1 were illegally, arbitrarily, and

without due process arrested by Respondent No.6, then acting in

his official capacity. When Petitioner No.1 approached the

concerned police station to seek an explanation for such unlawful

detention, Respondent No.6, in concert with other police

personnel, subjected the petitioner and her relatives to physical

assault, amounting to a flagrant violation of constitutional

guarantees and statutory protections. Aggrieved thereby,

Petitioner No.1 lodged a formal complaint against Respondent

No.6 and other delinquent officials.

2.1. Upon judicial scrutiny, the Learned Chief Judicial Magistrate,

Bikaner, by order dated 27.09.2018, took cognizance of the

offences against Respondent No.6. The said order was assailed by

Respondent No.6 by way of CRLMP No. 6829/2021 before this

Hon'ble Court, which came to be disposed of with specific

directions vide order dated 10.01.2025.

2.2. Subsequently, the learned Trial Court proceeded to frame

charges, and the matter was posted for prosecution evidence. It is

at this decisive stage that Respondent No.6, apprehensive of the

legal consequences of a full-fledged trial, resorted to coercive and

extra-legal measures, exerting relentless pressure upon the

petitioners to compel an unlawful compromise. Between

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20.12.2025 and 21.12.2025, a notorious gangster, Rohit Godara,

contacted the petitioners through WhatsApp calls from mobile

number +35192464922, specifically targeting Petitioner No.3

(Imran) on mobile number 9829972345, and issued unequivocal

threats demanding withdrawal of the criminal proceedings pending

against Respondent No.6.

2.3. When the petitioners and their family members ceased

responding to these intimidating communications, the said

gangster once again contacted Petitioner No.3 on 29.12.2025, this

time through WhatsApp number +35192464922, and openly

threatened dire and irreversible consequences in the event of

refusal to compromise the case.

2.4. In immediate response to these alarming developments,

Petitioner No.1 submitted a detailed representation dated

01.01.2026 to the Inspector General of Police, Bikaner Range,

seeking immediate police protection for the petitioners and their

family members, along with a prayer for registration of criminal

proceedings against the perpetrators. Regrettably, the said

representation elicited no response or remedial action whatsoever.

Thereafter, on 05.01.2026, Petitioner No.1 submitted a further

comprehensive representation to the Director General of Police,

Jaipur, reiterating the imminent threat to life and requesting

decisive legal action against the culprits, including Respondent

No.6. This representation too was met with sheer administrative

indifference and inaction.

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2.5. It is further averred that the private respondents and their

associates are persistently intimidating and obstructing the

petitioners, with the deliberate intent of preventing them from

appearing before the Trial Court as witnesses and from

prosecuting their case in accordance with law. The petitioners

continue to live under constant fear and coercion, as the threats

extended are real, proximate, and capable of execution, thereby

posing an immediate and serious danger to their lives and

personal safety.

2.6. In these exceptional and compelling circumstances, the

present Criminal Writ Petition has been instituted by invoking the

extraordinary jurisdiction of this Court, seeking protection of life

and liberty, enforcement of the rule of law, and appropriate

directions against the erring officials and criminal elements who

are misusing power and actively subverting the administration of

justice.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioners respectfully submits that

the respondent police authorities have displayed gross apathy and

deliberate indifference towards the grave and imminent threat to

the life and personal liberty of the petitioners and their family

members. Despite repeated and detailed representations, the

authorities have failed to extend even the minimum protection

mandated by law.

3.1. It is further submitted that owing to the pendency of the

criminal trial against Respondent No.6, particularly at the crucial

stage of prosecution evidence, Respondent No.6 has resorted to

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systematic intimidation and coercion, acting in connivance with

hardened criminals, including a notorious gangster, with the sole

intent to compel the petitioners to withdraw or compromise the

case, thereby subverting the administration of justice.

3.2. Learned counsel submits that the threats are real,

proximate, and capable of execution, given the criminal

antecedents of the persons involved, forcing the petitioners and

their family members to live under constant fear and restriction,

evidencing the seriousness of the threat perception. It is further

submitted that Article 21 of the Constitution of India casts a

positive obligation upon the State to protect its citizens. The

continued inaction of the police, despite clear knowledge of the

danger, is arbitrary, unconstitutional, and an abdication of

statutory duty, contrary to the law laid down by the Hon'ble

Supreme Court in Lata Singh v. State of U.P. & Anr. (AIR 2006 SC

2522).

3.3. Lastly, learned counsel submits that immediate protective

directions are imperative, failing which the petitioners'

fundamental rights would be rendered illusory. Accordingly, it is

prayed that the respondent authorities be directed to provide

adequate and effective protection to the life and liberty of the

petitioners and their family members, in accordance with law.

4. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties and gone

through the material as made available to this Court.

5. Upon a careful consideration of the material placed on

record, this Court finds that the matter raises issues of grave

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constitutional significance touching the life, liberty, and safety of

the petitioners and their family members.

5.1. The factual report submitted before this Court categorically

reveals that the police authorities themselves have admitted the

fact that threats have been extended to the petitioners by a

hardened criminal/gangster. Once such a serious fact stands

acknowledged by the State machinery, the obligation cast upon

the police authorities does not remain discretionary but becomes

imperative, immediate, and enforceable in law. In such

circumstances, the Superintendent of Police concerned is duty-

bound to take prompt, effective, and meaningful steps to

neutralize the threat perception, failing which the said authority

shall be answerable for the consequences that may ensue,

including any harm caused to the petitioners or their family

members.

5.2. This Court further notes that serious allegations have been

levelled against the respondent No.6 Sanjay Bothara, including

the assertion that a notorious gangster is allegedly acting at his

behest and is being used as an instrument to intimidate and

terrorize the petitioners with a view to coercing them into

withdrawing or compromising a pending criminal case. Such

allegations, if true, strike at the very root of the rule of law and

the criminal justice system.

5.3. The allegation that a gangster is operating under the

protection or instructions of a police officer raises a disturbing and

alarming question of systemic failure. When the protector

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becomes the destructor, the confidence of the public in the system

stands shattered, and the institutional framework meant to uphold

law and order risks complete collapse. A democratic society

governed by the rule of law cannot afford a situation where those

entrusted with the duty to protect citizens are perceived as agents

of intimidation and fear.

5.4. At the same time, this Court is conscious of the fact that the

respondent No.6 Sanjay Bothara has not been afforded an

opportunity of hearing at this stage. Therefore, no final or adverse

findings or definite opinions are being recorded against the said

officer on merits, however, the seriousness, gravity, and far-

reaching implications of the allegations compel this Court to

ensure that the matter is examined with utmost objectivity,

independence, and urgency.

6. Accordingly, this Court deems it fit and proper to issue the

following directions in the interest of justice:

1. The Superintendent of Police concerned shall immediately

address the threat perception and ensure that adequate,

effective, and continuous protection is provided to the

petitioners and their family members, strictly in accordance

with law.

2. The Director General of Police, Jaipur is directed to look into

the matter with due seriousness and ensure that the

allegations are not treated casually or mechanically.

3. The Home Secretary, Govt. Of Rajasthan, Jaipur and the

Director General of Police, Jaipur are directed to pass

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appropriate, adequate, and reasoned orders in this regard

and to cause a thorough, fair, and impartial inquiry into the

allegations by appointing a senior officer.

4. In order to uphold the integrity, impartiality, and institutional

sanctity of the inquiry, it is observed that, where considered

appropriate, the respondent No.6 shall remain entirely

disengaged from the petitioners and their family members,

so as to preclude any possibility of undue influence, direct or

indirect, upon the investigative process. It would further

advance the ends of justice to prohibit the said officer, for

the duration of the inquiry, from contacting or associating in

any manner with individuals conversant with the facts in

issue or material to the proceedings, thereby ensuring that

the inquiry remains untainted by interference, coercion, or

intimidation.