SUDHIR SHARMA Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has been detained under Section 12(2) of the Bihar Control of Crimes Act (hereinafter called the Act). The present appli- cation is for quashing his detention by issuance of a writ of habeas corpus.

(2.) The facts leading to his detention, which have been mentioned as grounds thereof, were that on 13-5-1988 an incident took place near village Manpur, P. S. Chandankeyari in the district of Dhanbad. The incident was that on 13-5-1988 one Jaipati Thakur wanted to board a bus bearing No. BHG 9165. He was prevented from entering the bus be three persons. Those three persons assaulted him resulting in Jaipati Thakur's falling down. The bus had just started moving on when it was commanded by the miscreants to stop it. The petitioner (the detenu) along with his associates got down from the bus and started brutally assaulting Jaipati Thakur. Seeing the promiscuous beating of Jaipati Thakur, one Hari Thakur, who was sitting in a nearby shop tried to intervene. The miscreants which included the petitioner than started assaulting Hari Thakur. They assaulted him. They also pressed a lathi on to his chest. Hari Thakur received grievous injuries. He cried for life. That set a commotion, shop closed down, passengers of the bus started crying. The assailants then fled away. Hari Thakur was carried to a village Doctor where he was declared dead. The beating of Jaipati Thakur took place because of his refusal to pay Rangdari tax to the notorious gangsters and Rangdars of the locality which included the detenu as well. On those facts, Chandankeyari P. S. Case No. 39/88 dated 13-5-1988 under section 302/34 of the Indian Penal Code was instituted. That was the ground for his detention.

(3.) This history of the petitioner is that he was accused in another case, namely, Chandankeyari P. S. Case No. 53/84 under Sections 147, 148, 149, 307, 323, 373, 353 and 379 of the Indian Penal Code etc. Charge-sheet was submitted in the case. In 1985 he took part in another occurrence which led to the institution of Jorapokhar (Sudamdih) P. S. Case No. 127/85 under Section 387 of the Indian Penal Code. In 1986 he took part in an occurrence which led to the institution of Chandankeyari P. S. Case No. 44/86 under Sections 452, 332, 506/ 35 of the Indian Penal Code. The detenu has been chargesheeted in all the three cases. These three cases were mentioned to show that the petitioner was an anti social element.