STATE OF KERALA Vs. ROOPESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Leave granted.

(2.) Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the common impugned judgment and order passed by the High Court in respect to Criminal Revision Petition Nos. 732 of 2019 to 734 of 2019 by which the High Court has allowed the said Revision Petitions preferred by the respondent herein-original accused and has discharged the accused for the offences under Ss. 20 and 38 of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (for short 'UAP Act') and other offence under Sec. 124A of the IPC and other offences under the IPC, the State of Kerala has preferred the present appeals.

(3.) Mr. Maninder Singh, learned Senior Advocate appearing on behalf of the appellant-State, has heavily relied upon the decisions of this Court in State of Andhra Pradesh through Inspector General, National Investigation Agency vs. Mohd. Hussain alias Saleem, (2014) 1 SCC 706, State of Andhra Pradesh through Inspector General, National Investigation Agency vs. Mohd. Hussain alias Saleem, (2014) 1 SCC 258 and Bikramjit Singh vs. State of Punjab, (2020) 10 SCC 616 and relying upon Sec. 21 of the National Investigation Agency Act, 2008 (for short 'NIA Act') has submitted that the impugned judgment and order passed by the learned Single Judge of the High Court is unsustainable. It is submitted that in view of Sec. 21(1) of the NIA Act, the revision application against the order passed by the Special Court refusing to discharge the accused ought to have been heard by the Division Bench as mandated under sub-sec. (2) of Sec. 21 of the NIA Act. Therefore, it is prayed to allow the present appeals and remand the matter to the High Court to decide the same revision petitions by the Division Bench of the High Court.