K NAGABHUSHANA Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Criminal Petition No.101086/2020 has been filed by accused No.1 and Criminal Petition No.100946/2020 has been filed by accused No.3 under Section 438 of The Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as the Cr.P.C. , for brevity) seeking anticipatory bail in Crime No.100/2020 of Hagaribommanahalli Police Station, registered for the offences punishable under Sections 403, 406, 408 and 409 of The Indian Penal Code (hereinafter referred to as the IPC , for brevity).

(2.) It is the case of the prosecution that the Joint director (Training) and Ex-Officio Joint Apprenticeship Adviser, Department of Industrial Training and Employment, Divisional Officer, Kalaburgi, lodged a complaint alleging that under the SCP and TSP scheme, the Government had taken to provide Laptops to the SC/ST ITI students at free of cost. It is alleged that accused No.1 who is the principal of Sri. Guru Kottureshwara Private ITI College, Hagaribommanahalli and accused No.4-Sharukh, who is the Administrator of Sri. Guru Kottureshwara Private ITI College, Hagaribommanahalli, sold the Laptops at Brundavana Hotel, Station Road, Dharwad and they were caught red-handed by the Vidyagiri Police, Dharwad and a case came to be registered in Crime No.154/2019 for the offence punishable under Sections 41(1)(d) and 102 of Cr.P.C. read with Section 380 of IPC. The Commissioner, Department of Industrial Training and Employment, Ballari, had directed the complainant to conduct an inquiry into the matter and submit a report. Accordingly, he carried out the said enquiry and submitted a report stating that t accused No.1 being the Principal and accused No.2, being the Administrator and accused No.3 being the Nodal Officer of Sri guru Kottureshwara Private ITI college Hagaribommanahalli, colluded with each other and misappropriated the Laptops supplied by the Government under SCP and TSP scheme for the benefit of SC/ST ITI Students for the Academic year 2016-17 and they have not followed the directions to distribute the laptops. Based on the said complaint, the Hagaribommanahalli P.S. authorities have registered a case in Crime No.100/2020 for the offence punishable under Sections 403, 406, 408 and 409 read with Section 34 of IPC. The petitioners in both the petitions have been arrayed as accused Nos.1 and 3 in the FIR and apprehend their arrest. Accused N0.1 has filed a petition seeking anticipatory in Crl.Misc.No.5215/2020 and the same came to be dismissed by order dated 18.08.2020. Accused No.3 has filed Crl.Misc.No.5179/2020 seeking anticipatory bail and the same came to be rejected by order dated 29.07.2020 by the learned III Additional District and Sessions Judge, Ballari sitting at Hosapete. Therefore, accused Nos.1 and 3 are before this Court seeking bail.

(3.) Heard the learned counsel appearing for the petitioner and the learned High Court Government Pleader for the respondent-State.