Renjith vs State of Kerala - Court Judgment

SooperKanoon Citationsooperkanoon.com/1638649
CourtKerala High Court
Decided OnMay-31-2021
Case NumberBail Appl./3726/2021
JudgeHonourable Mr. Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan V
AppellantRenjith
RespondentState of Kerala
Excerpt:
bail appl. no. 3726 of 2021 1in the high court of kerala at ernakulampresent the honourable mr. justice raja vijayaraghavan v monday, the 31st day of may 2021 / 10th jyaishta, 1943 bail appl. no. 3726 of 2021 crime no.18 of 2021 of the varappuzha excise range office, ernakulampetitioner/accused: renjith aged 37 years son of unnnikrishnan, thurayaparambil house,kaitharam p.o, kottuvally village ernakulam, pin - 683519. by adv prasun.s respondent/s: state of kerala represented by public prosecutor,high court of kerala ernakulam, pin - 682031 by adv public prosecutor smt.sreeja.v this bail application having come up for admission on 31.05.2021, the court on the same day delivered the following: bail appl. no. 3726 of 2021 2orderthis application seeking pre-arrest bail filed under section 438 of the code of criminal procedure .2. crime no.18 of 2021 of the varappuzha excise range office, ernakulam was registered under section 8(1)(j), 2 and section 63 of the abkari act against a person who could be identified at sight.3. on 6.4.2021 at about 5.15 p.m., while the excise party was on patrolling duty, they found two persons standing beside a scooter bearing registration no.kl 42 k8375. the scooter was inspected and the officers are alleged to have seized about two litres of illicit arrack concealed inside the scooter.4. as the scooter belonged to him, apprehending that he would be arrested, thepetitioner approached the court of session seeking protection. however, based on instruction that the petitioner has not been arrayed as an accused, the application was dismissed by annexure a1 order. he contends that he is continuously being summoned by excise officers for one reason or the other.5. the learned public prosecutor has strenuously opposed the prayer. it issubmitted that a notice under section 48 of the act was issued to the petitioner, but he failed to appear. it is submitted that the petitioner has not been arrayed as an accused till date.6. i have considered the submissions advanced. it appears from the records that bail appl. no. 3726 of 2021 3the crime was registered on 6.4.2021. even now the petitioner has not been arrayed as an accused. the alleged contraband has already been seized. in that view of the matter, the apprehension expressed by the petitioner appears to be genuine. considering the facts and circumstances, the following order is passed.in the event of the arrest of the petitioner in crime no.18 of 2021 of the varappuzha excise range office he shall be released on bail on his executing a bond for a sum of rs.50,000/- (rupees fifty thousand only) with two solvent sureties each for the like sum. the above order shall be subject to the following conditions:i) the petitioner shall cooperate with the investigation and shall appear before the investigating officer on all saturdays between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., for two months or till final report is filed, whichever is earlier. ii) he shall not directly or indirectly make any inducement, threat or promise to any person acquainted with the facts of the case so as to dissuade him/her from disclosing such facts to the court or to any police officer. iii) he shall not commit any similar offence while on bail. in case of violation of any of the above conditions, the jurisdictional court shall be empowered to consider the application for cancellation, if any, and pass appropriate orders in accordance with the law. sd/- raja vijayaraghavan v judge sru
Judgment:

BAIL APPL. NO. 3726 OF 2021 1

IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM

PRESENT THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE RAJA VIJAYARAGHAVAN V MONDAY, THE 31ST DAY OF MAY 2021 / 10TH JYAISHTA, 1943 BAIL APPL. NO. 3726 OF 2021 CRIME NO.18 OF 2021 OF THE VARAPPUZHA EXCISE RANGE OFFICE, ERNAKULAM

PETITIONER/ACCUSED: RENJITH AGED 37 YEARS SON OF UNNNIKRISHNAN, THURAYAPARAMBIL HOUSE,KAITHARAM P.O, KOTTUVALLY VILLAGE ERNAKULAM, PIN - 683519. BY ADV PRASUN.S RESPONDENT/S: STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY PUBLIC PROSECUTOR,HIGH COURT OF KERALA ERNAKULAM, PIN - 682031 BY ADV PUBLIC PROSECUTOR SMT.SREEJA.V THIS BAIL APPLICATION HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 31.05.2021, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: BAIL APPL. NO. 3726 OF 2021 2

ORDER

This application seeking pre-arrest bail filed under section 438 of the Code of Criminal Procedure .

2. Crime No.18 of 2021 of the Varappuzha Excise Range Office, Ernakulam was registered under Section 8(1)(j), 2 and Section 63 of the Abkari Act against a person who could be identified at sight.

3. On 6.4.2021 at about 5.15 p.m., while the Excise party was on patrolling duty, they found two persons standing beside a scooter bearing Registration No.KL 42 K

8375. The scooter was inspected and the officers are alleged to have seized about two litres of illicit arrack concealed inside the scooter.

4. As the scooter belonged to him, apprehending that he would be arrested, the

petitioner approached the Court of Session seeking protection. However, based on instruction that the petitioner has not been arrayed as an accused, the application was dismissed by Annexure A1 order. He contends that he is continuously being summoned by Excise Officers for one reason or the other.

5. The learned Public Prosecutor has strenuously opposed the prayer. It is

submitted that a notice under section 48 of the Act was issued to the petitioner, but he failed to appear. It is submitted that the petitioner has not been arrayed as an accused till date.

6. I have considered the submissions advanced. It appears from the records that BAIL APPL. NO. 3726 OF 2021 3

the crime was registered on 6.4.2021. Even now the petitioner has not been arrayed as an accused. The alleged contraband has already been seized. In that view of the matter, the apprehension expressed by the petitioner appears to be genuine. Considering the facts and circumstances, the following order is passed.

In the event of the arrest of the petitioner in Crime No.18 of 2021 of the Varappuzha Excise Range Office he shall be released on bail on his executing a bond for a sum of Rs.50,000/- (Rupees Fifty thousand only) with two solvent sureties each for the like sum. The above order shall be subject to the following conditions:

i) The petitioner shall cooperate with the investigation and shall appear before the Investigating Officer on all Saturdays between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., for two months or till final report is filed, whichever is earlier. ii) He shall not directly or indirectly make any inducement, threat or promise to any person acquainted with the facts of the case so as to dissuade him/her from disclosing such facts to the court or to any police officer. iii) He shall not commit any similar offence while on bail. In case of violation of any of the above conditions, the jurisdictional Court shall be empowered to consider the application for cancellation, if any, and pass appropriate orders in accordance with the law. Sd/- RAJA VIJAYARAGHAVAN V JUDGE Sru