STATE OF GUJARAT Vs. SONI SACHINKUMAR NAVINCHANDRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Even though the present petition by the State for cancellation of bail is requested to be disposed as not pressed, an elaborate order requires to be made in view of serious abuse of process of the Court at the instance of the State or the investigation officer in the criminal case alleging non bailable, cognizable offences involving crores of rupees.

(2.) The backdrop of relevant facts is that an FIR came to be lodged and registered as Ist C.R.No.3/2007 on 19-1-2007 in L.C.B. Police Station, Patan. It was, in substance, alleged that eight accused persons named in the FIR had committed offences punishable under Sections 406, 420, 506 (1) and 114 of the Indian Penal Code by taking away goods worth crores of rupees and not paying the price but threatening the complainant. Even as permanent addresses of the accused persons were found and available to the investigating officer, three persons out of the list of accused persons were immediately arrested and when they were ordered to be released on bail by the impugned order, present petition was filed two months thereafter for cancellation of bail. The petition was admitted on 26-4-2007 and Rule was made returnable on 10th May 2007, but, Rule not having been received back, fresh notices of Rule were ordered to be issued on 10-5-2007 making them returnable on 14th June 2007. Since fresh notices of Rule returnable on 29-8-2007 were again ordered to be issued and learned Public Prosecutor was requested to collect the packet of notice and serve them upon the respondents in time, after appearance of the respondents following order was made on 5-9-2007.

(3.) Since it was stated at the bar that the main accused persons were never arrested, even as they were pursuing other proceedings in this Court, the papers of those cases being Criminal Misc. Application No.1838/2007 and 1444/2007 were called for perusal. It has transpired that Criminal Misc. Application No.1444/2007 was filed by six out of eight accused persons, including three respondents herein, for the relief of quashing the FIR registered as I-C.R.No.3/2007 and by order dated 13-2-2007 further proceeding on that FIR was stayed by way of ad-interim relief. That order continued to operate till 9-7-2007, when the petition was dismissed as withdrawn, after recording that talks of settlement were going on among the parties. Another Criminal Misc. Application No.1838/2007 was filed by the two other accused persons, who, by their role in commission of the alleged offence were named as main accused persons. That petition was also made under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 for quashing the aforesaid FIR and stay of further proceedings pursuant to it. In that petition also, by virtue of first order dated 21-2-2007, ad-interim relief was granted to stay further proceeding and it continued to operate till 9-7-2007, when the petition was dismissed as withdrawn by similar order. In either of the petition, no affidavit-in-reply was filed by any of the respondents including the State Government.