PULI Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These Criminal appeals have been filed against the dismissal of the bail applications in Crl.M.P.Nos.430, 431, 390 and 481 of 2021 by order dtd. 30/12/2021 passed by the learned Sessions Judge, Special Court for Trial of Cases under SC/ST (POA) Act, Vellore.

(2.) The respondent has registered a case in Crime No.80/2021 on 8/4/2021 on the complaint of one Soundarraj for the offences under Ss. 147, 148, 341, 323, 324, 506 (ii), 307, 302 IPC read with Ss. 3(1)(r), 3(1)(s) and 3(1)(v) of SC/ST (PoA) Act, 1989. The averments as per the defacto complainant is that he is a resident of Thendral Nagar, Arakkonam and that he has completed electrician course and was working in SL Company. The native place of his mother is Sembedu village and that he frequently used to visit his grandmother's house. Whileso on 7/4/2021 at about 07.30 p.m., while he was travelling in his two wheeler along with his relative Appunu, the first accused had called the defacto complainant. At that time, the pillion rider on seeing some known persons, had called him. At that time, the first accused and the persons along with him had questioned them as to why he had called him and thereafter, dashed against the two wheeler and that they had also abused the defacto complainant and his relative using filthy language and by calling their caste name. Thereafter, the defacto complainant had gone back to his village and he had called his friends and had returned back to the village of the accused. At that time, the accused who were armed with deadly weapons had surrounded them and assaulted with knife, stick and stones and due to which, two persons who had accompanied the defacto complainant died and other persons who accompanied the defacto complainant sustained grievous injuries. Based on the complaint, the case was registered and later, after completing the investigation, the respondent has filed final report and it has been taken up for trial in Spl.S.C.No.12 of 2021. The appellants/accused had filed Crl.M.P.Nos. 430, 431, 390 and 481 of 2021 seeking for bail on the file of the the learned Sessions Judge, Special Court for Trial of Cases under SC/ST (POA) Act, Vellore and the same was dismissed by the Special Court and against which, the present appeals are preferred.

(3.) Mr.R.Vivekananthan, learned counsel for the appellants/A1 to A8 and A13 in Crl.A.Nos.16 and 17 of 2022 would submit that it is a case where the defacto complainant and his men are the aggressors. Even as per the defacto complainant, they were stated to have been abused by the first accused, while he was crossing the village. The incident had happened at 06.30 p.m. whereas the defacto complainant had returned back to his village and gathered his men and thereafter they have come to the village of the accused and the incident had happened when they have formed an unlawful assembly and come to the village of the accused. It is not a case where the accused have gone to the village of the deceased. He would further submit that some of the accused were arrested and some of them have surrendered before the jurisdictional Magistrate Courts. He would submit that right from the date of arrest, they are in the judicial custody. Meanwhile, pursuant to the detention order passed on 6/5/2021 and 7/5/2021, the first accused and the third accused in this case were detained and this Court by its order dtd. 23/12/2021, had quashed the detention orders in respect of the accused. He would further submit that since the appellants were in preventive detention, they did not move for bail. In respect of the Accused No.14, he was not detained and he had applied for bail in Crl.M.P.No.190 of 2021 and was granted bail by the Special Judge on 20/7/2021. He would reiterate that as per the prosecution, it is not a pre-planned incident and the incident had happened, when the defacto complainant along with his men had come to the village of the appellants and created ruckus. He would submit that the accused A1, A2, A3 were arrested on 9/4/2021, A5 and A6 were arrested on 27/4/2021, A4 and A13 surrendered on 15/4/2021, A7 and A8 surrendered on 19/4/2021. He would submit that the appellants are prepared to abide by any stringent conditions imposed on them and they may be granted bail so as to conduct the trial.