VIKAS KAUSHALKUMAR GUPTA Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioners who are students of respondent No. 2 Engineering College have brought in question the legality and validity of the orders passed by the Principal of the same college on 20th July, 2000 expelling them from the college and disallowing them from appearing in any examination as students of the said college in future.

(2.) THE petitioner No. 1 has completed the first semester of second year of Engineering, petitioner No. 2 was the classmate of petitioner No. 1, whereas petitioner No. 3 has completed first semester of second year (Mech. ). Petitioner No. 4 has completed first semester of 3rd year (Electronics), petitioner No. 5 has completed first semester of second year (Electronics and Telecommunication), petitioner No. 6 was to appear for final examinations of B. E. and petitioner No. 7 has completed first semester of second year (Mechanical ). It is alleged that, on 4th February, 2000 they had, under some pretext, taken one of their college-mates Devendra Puri on Latur Road between 9. 30 to 10. 00 p. m. and attacked him with sticks/iron rods and during the said attack he sustained serious head injury and fell unconscious. Some of the petitioners then took him to Solapur and got him admitted at the Ashwini Sahakari Rugnalaya and Research Centre in the midnight or the early hours of 5th February, 2000. At the said hospital they allegedly informed that Devendra Puri sustained the injuries because of accident and he was a student studying in the same college and, therefore, was brought to the hospital urgently. However, an F. I. R. came to be lodged on 6th June, 2000 at about 7. 45 p. m. with the Police Station of Tuljapur by one of their colleague viz. Jitendrakumar Singh, stating therein that, Devendra Puri was assaulted by the petitioners and in fact they had attempted to murder him. It was also stated in the said F. I. R. that, the complainant on receiving the information, of Devendra being admitted in the hospital at Solapur went to visit him and he was threatened by some of the petitioners that if he disclosed the fact regarding the assault on Devendra Puri at their hands, he would be also eliminated. Accordingly, Crime No. 15/2000 came to be registered against the petitioners and eventually they surrendered to the Police Station.

(3.) CRIME No. 15/2000 was registered for the offences punishable under sections 307, 148, 149 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code and consequently their bail applications were rejected by the Court below as well as by this Court. However, on completion of investigation, charge-sheet was filed and thereafter the petitioners have been released on bail by this Court by order dated 13th and 14th of June, 2000.