PANDURANGABHAT Vs. STATE BY MALEBENNUR POLICE HARIHAR TALUK

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners/accused 1 to 8 are knocking at the doors of this Court in the subject petition calling in question proceedings in SC and ST (Spl.) Case No.24 of 2016 arising out of crime in Crime No.146 of 2016 for offences punishable under Ss. 3(1)(10) and (11) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 ('the Act' for short) and Ss. 506, 341, 504, 143, 147, 148, 149, 323, 324 and 354(B) of the IPC and order dtd. 10/1/2023 passed in the said case by the II Additional District and Sessions Judge, Davangere, declining to discharge the petitioners from the array of accused.

(2.) Facts, in brief, adumbrated are as follows:- The 2nd respondent, wife of one Nagappa is the complainant. It is alleged that special poojas are being held at Gadi Chowdeshwari Temple ('the Temple' for short) on every new moon day and full moon day of the month and to witness the said occasion on 17/9/2016, the complainant and her husband along with others seek to visit Gadi Chowdeshwari Temple at 9.00 a.m., at which point in time the petitioners along with others are alleged to have stopped the complainant and her family, assaulted the complainant and her husband including the child and have hurled several abuses against them taking the name of the caste and prevented them from entering the temple. It is thereafter, the complainant registers a complaint before the jurisdictional police on 18/9/2016, the next day, alleging all the incidents that became ingredients of offences punishable under Sec. 3(1)(10) and (11) of the Act and other offences under the IPC. This becomes a crime in Crime No.146 of 2016 for the afore-mentioned offences. The police then conduct an investigation on the allegations made by the complainant, records statements of witnesses including eye witnesses and draw up a charge sheet against the petitioners for all the aforesaid offences including an offence under Sec. 354B of the IPC. The moment the charge sheet is filed, the petitioners have knocked at the doors of the learned Sessions Judge by filing an application under Sec. 227 of the CrPC seeking their discharge from the array of accused. The learned Sessions Judge, by a detailed order, turns down the application on 10/1/2022. It is turning down of the application for discharge and filing of the charge sheet is what has driven the petitioners to this Court in the subject petition.

(3.) Heard Sri P.S.Malipatil, learned counsel appearing for the petitioners, Smt. K.P. Yashodha, learned High Court Government Pleader appearing for respondent No.1 and Sri S.G. Rajendra Reddy, learned counsel appearing for respondent No.2.