HUKAM SINGH Vs. STATE THRU. DELHI ADMN.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE personal liberty of the petitioner was deprived for over a month is not in dispute. There is also no dispute about the facts which in brief are :

(2.) IN 1983 one Hukam Singh was arrested for offence under Section 406, Indian Penal Code. That Hukam Singh was enlarged on bail by Court. During trial the said Hukam Singh jumped bail. He was declared proclaimed offender. Non-bailable warrants were issued for his arrest on the holiday for Independence Day for the year 1991, the petitioner whose name also happens to be Hukam Singh was arrested taking him to be the person who had jumped bail. Unfortunately, for the petitioner, there was similarity in the names of their father. The petitioner is son of Ram Chander. The other Hukam Singh is son of Ram Singh. Further, to the bad luck of the petitioner, the absconding Hukum Singh used to live in the year 1983 in the same locality where the petitioner was residing though in house bearing different municipal number. On 16th August, 1991, petitioner moved an application for grant of bail in the Court of Metropolitan Magistrate. It was dismissed. Or, 17th August, 1991, A.S.I. Om Prakash of Police Station Kashmiri Gate moved an application in the Court of Metropolitan Magistrate for issue of production warrants against the petitioner for showing/effecting his formal arrest in the case in which Hukam Singh had been declared proclaimed offender. That application was duly forwarded by the Incharge Police Post. On 19th August, 1991, formal arrest of petitioner Hukam Singh was made in the case in which Hukam Singh was declared proclaimed offender and the petitioner was remanded to judicial custody.

(3.) AN application for grant of bail was filed by Petitioner- Hukam Singh also in the Court of Session. That too was dismissed but learned Additional Sessions Judge directed the Metropolitan Magistrate to make enquiry as to grouse and grievance of the petitioner that he is not that Hukam Singh whom the police wanted to apprehend. The petitioner Hukam Singh had pleaded before the Additional Sessions Judge that neither the name of his father is Ram Singh nor is the resident of house shown in the charge sheet and in the person search memo. The specimen signatures and thumb impressions of the petitioner were sent to Central Forensic Science Laboratory for comparison with the finger prints of the real culprit. The said laboratory gave report dated 11 th September, 1991 stating that the finger prints of the real culprit were faint and blurted and do not admit of comparison. Hukam Singh, the petitioner, again moved an application for grant of bail in the Court of Session. On 21st September 1991, after noticing that the petitioner is seriously disputing his involvement on the ground that some other Hukam Singh was accused and it was a case of mistaken identity, luckily another Additional Sessions Judge came to petitioner's rescue and he was ordered to be released on bail upon his executing personal bond in the sum of Rs. 5,000/- with two sureties in the like amount. Petitioner's agony of custody, however, came to an end on 23rd September, 1991 when he was released on bail.