AJIKUMAR Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner, a practising advocate, was served with a notice under Sec. 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short 'BNSS'), calling upon him to appear before the investigating officer in a crime in which he represented the accused at the Magistrate Court in a hearing on the bail application - a strange procedure unheard of in criminal investigation.

(2.) The Njarakkal Police registered a crime as Crime No.157 of 2025 against a husband and wife, alleging that they are Bangladeshi nationals and do not have proper documents to prove their citizenship. It is alleged that the couple fabricated and forged the documents such as their Aadhar Cards, Election Identity Cards, Driving Licence etc., to falsely establish their Indian citizenship and thus committed the offences punishable under Ss. 336(2) and 340(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (for short 'BNS'), as well as Ss. 14A, 14(b) and 14(c) of the Foreigners Act. The petitioner filed a bail application for the accused before the Judicial First-Class Magistrate Court, Njarakkal. The bail application was dismissed.

(3.) According to the petitioner, Aadhar Cards, Election Identity Cards, Driving Licence etc., of his clients were handed over to him by his clients to produce before the court. Accordingly, he produced 20 documents in originals, including the documents mentioned above with a memo before the court on 15/2/2025. On the previous day, i.e., on 14/2/2025, the Inspector of Police, Njarakkal Police Station, issued Ext.P1 notice under Sec. 94 of BNSS to the petitioner, calling upon him to produce the documents before the police on 17/2/2025 at 10.00 a.m. The petitioner gave Ext.P2 reply on 17/2/2025 to Ext.P1 notice stating that he had already produced all the documents before the court.