BASAWARAJ Vs. STATE OF KARNATAKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This bail petition is filed under Section 439 of Cr.P.C., seeking to grant regular bail to the petitioner/accused No.1 in of Bhalki Town Police Station, for the offences punishable under Sections 302, 201 r/w Section 34 of IPC.

(2.) Factual matrix of the petition are as under: On 26.08.2018 at about 12 noon the complainant by name Sachin of Dadgi lodged the complaint before Bhalki Town Police Station stating that on the previous day around 8.00 a.m., when he went to his land in Bhalki limits, he found that a person's body was found hanging to a neem tree. It was a male person about 35- 40 years old and it was found that he was hanged by using a pant. Based on his information, Bhalki Town Police registered a case in UDR No.10/2018 under Section 174 of Cr.P.C. During the course of investigation, the Investigating Officer has recorded the statement of witnesses including the relatives of the deceased, wherein it was revealed that the name of the deceased was Niteesh S/o Basappa Biradar resident of Kurub Khelagi. In those statements, it was also revealed that the friends of the deceased namely, Basappa @ Ajaykumar and Sachin had financial transactions with the deceased and they might have murdered Niteesh. It was also found that the deceased had not committed suicide but he was murdered. As such, a case was registered in of Bhalki Town Police Station for the offences punishable under Sections 302, 201 r/w Section 34 of IPC on the basis of the complaint lodged by ASI of Bhalki Town Police Station. During the course of investigation, the Investigating Officer had arrested petitioner/accused No.1 on 29.11.2018 and during his interrogation, it is alleged that he has confessed to the crime and has given voluntary statement and led the police team to a place where accused Nos.1 and 2 had thrown the mobile phone of the deceased and panchanama was conducted. After completion of investigation, the respondent-Police have laid the chargesheet against the petitioner and another before the committal Court in C.C.No.80/2019 alleging therein that the deceased had given a hand loan of Rs.30,000/- to each accused and he was demanding the same. The deceased had told them that, if they did not pay money to him, he will spoil their reputation in the village. Therefore, on 24.08.2018 the accused called the deceased to Bhalki with an intention to remove him and made him to drink wine in a Bhavani Wine Shop in Bhalki and at about 11.00 p.m., in the night, took him on a TVS vehicle to the outskirts of Bhalki Town on Bhalki-Humnabad Road, behind the Lingaraj Dhaba in a land of CW.17 and committed the murder and in order to cause disappearance of evidence, hanged the deceased by a pant to a neem tree.

(3.) I have heard the learned counsel for the petitioner as well as the learned High Court Government Pleader for respondent and perused the records of the case.