LALTU MAL Vs. STATE OF WEST BENGAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner claims to be a rickshaw-puller belonging to Schedule Caste community. On the basis of an order passed by the concerned Magistrate under section 156 (3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (hereafter the Code) in a proceeding initiated by the petitioner, Chinsurah Police Station Case No. 232 dated 24. 8. 05 under Sections 147/148/149/354/447/427/379/506/376/511 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 3 (i) (iii) (iv) (v) (x) (xi) of the Schedule Castes and schedule Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (hereafter the Act of 1989)was registered for investigation against nine accused persons namely (1) Sukanta das @ Bhombal, son of late Panchanan Das, presently residing at Buroshibtala, police Station-Chinsurah, District-Hooghly; (2) Ujjal Ghosh @ Biku; (3) Lal mohan Ghosh @ Ghota (4) Lalu Das; (5) Pintu Das; (6) Ujjal Bhattacharya (7)Achintya Goswami; (8) Bubai Pal; (9) Apu Ghosh.

(2.) INVESTIGATION of the case culminated in charge sheet being filed by the police against the aforesaid nine persons under provisions of law mentioned hereinabove.

(3.) THE accused persons had applied for anticipatory bail under Section 438 of the Code before the learned Sessions Judge, Hooghly giving rise to Criminal Misc. Case No. 1491/05. While considering the application, the concerned Sessions judge did not note that offences under the provisions of the Act of 1989 had been registered and that in terms of Section 18 thereof, an application under Section 438 of the Code would not lie. On the basis of submission made by learned public Prosecutor who raised no objection to the prayer for anticipatory bail and submitted that there is practically no case made out for the offence under sections 376/379 read with Section 511 of the Indian Penal Code, against the applicants for bail, the learned Sessions Judge granted the application by order no. 2 dated 20. 9. 05 with a direction that the applicants would be released on bail of Rs. 500/- with one surety of like amount each subject to compliance with the conditions enumerated in Section 438 (2) of the Code, with a further direction to surrender before the appropriate forum by 5. 10. 05.