KAUSHIK PRAVINCHANDRA MANEK Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Rule. Mr. Hardik Soni, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, waives service of notice of Rule for the respondent State of Gujarat.

(2.) The present application for grant of anticipatory bail under section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 ('the Code' for short), has been preferred by the applicant in connection with FIR being C.R. No. II 382 of 2008 registered with 'A' Division Police Station, Bhavnagar, on 012008, for the offence punishable under Section 85(2)(C) of the Gujarat Value Added Tax Act, 2003 ('VAT Act' for short) and Section 409 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC), added on the report of the Investigating Officer dated 101.2009.

(3.) The present is a successive application for anticipatory bail. Earlier, the applicant had preferred Criminal Misc. Application No. 843 of 2009 that was rejected by an order dated 11.02.2009, passed by this Court. After the rejection of the said application, the applicant had preferred a petition for quashing of the FIR under Section 482 of the Code being Criminal Misc. Application No. 2206 of 2009. By an order dated 002009, this Court (Coram: Anant S. Dave, J.) issued Rule and granted ad-interim relief in terms of Paragraph 15(C) till further orders. The petition was heard and finally decided and by order dated 30.11.2016, it stood dismissed and the interim relief stood vacated. After the dismissal of the quashing petition, the applicant moved the present application before this Court. Between the dismissal of the quashing petition and the filing of the present application, the applicant was not arrested though there was no interim relief in his favour upto 12.01.2008. On 12.01.2008, this Court, after hearing Mr. N.D. Nanavaty, learned Senior Counsel for the applicant and Mr. Hardik Soni, learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the respondent State of Gujarat and perusing the material on record, directed the applicant to appear before the concerned Investigating Officer on 17.01.2018 for the interrogation and recording of evidence. It was, however, directed that the Investigating Officer would not arrest the applicant till the next date of hearing. The application was listed on 19.01.2018, on which date, the interim relief granted earlier was continued upto 25.01.2018.