Sobhit v. State of U.P. and 3 Others

Court No. - 66 Case :- CRIMINAL MISC. BAIL APPLICATION No. - 43131 of 2023 Applicant :- Sobhit Opposite Party :- State Of U.P. And 3 Others Counsel for Applicant :- A.C.Srivastava,Subham Singh Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A. Hon'ble Ajay Bhanot,J. Shri Paritosh Kumar Malviya, learned AGA-I contends that the police authorities in compliance of the directions issued by this Court in Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. 46998 of 2020 (Junaid Vs State of U.P. and another) reported at 2021 (6) ADJ 511 and with a view to implement the provisions of POCSO Act, 2012 read with POCSO Rules, 2020, have served the bail application upon the victim/legal guardian as well as upon the CWC. By means of the bail application the applicant has prayed to be enlarged on bail in Case Crime No. 590 of 2019 at Police Station-Massorrie, District-Ghaziabad under Sections 354, 354A, 376D, 452, 506 IPC and Section 5G/6 POCSO Act. The applicant is in jail since

09.10.2019. The bail application of the applicant was rejected by the learned trial court on 04.12.2020. The following arguments made by Shri Subham Singh, learned counsel on behalf of the applicant, which could not be satisfactorily refuted by Shri Paritosh Kumar Malviya, learned AGA-I from the record, entitle the applicant for grant of bail:

¶1Learned counsel for the applicant contests the minority of the victim as depicted in the prosecution case.

¶2The victim was wrongly shown as a minor of 14 years in the F.I.R. only to falsely implicate the applicant under the stringent provisions of the POCSO Act and cause his imprisonment.

¶3Learned counsel for the applicant contests the age of the victim set out in the prosecution case in light of the judgement of this Court in Monish Vs. State of U.P. and others (Criminal Misc. Bail Application No. 55026 of 2021) and on the following grounds:

(i) There are material contradictions in the age of the victim as recorded in various prosecution documents.

(ii) The age of the victim was incorrectly got registered in the school records by the victim's parents to give her an advantage in life. There is no lawful basis for the age related entry in the school record. The school records disclosing her age as 14 years are unreliable.

(iii) The victim under in her statements under Sections 161 and 164 Cr.P.C. has stated that she is 14 years of age respectively. No medical examination to determine the correct age of the victim as per the latest scientific criteria and medical protocol by eminent doctors from a reputed institution was got done by the prosecution as it would establish the majority of the victim and falsify the prosecution case. The victim is in fact a major.

¶4Delay in lodgment of the FIR in the facts of this case is fatal to the prosecution case.

¶5The victim was intimate with the principal offender Awdhesh. Their relationship got exposed.

¶6Pursuant to the exposure of their relationship, the F.I.R. was got lodged at the behest of the family members of the victim to deflect attention from her own conduct.

¶7No allegation of commission of rape by the applicant with the victim has been made by her in the statement under Section 161 Cr.P.C.

¶8False and aggravated allegations were made under Section 164 Cr.P.C. by the victim at the behest of her parents to save the failing prosecution case.

¶9Major inconsistencies in the FIR, the statement under Section 161 and 164 Cr.P.C. discredit the prosecution case.

¶10The victim was never confined or bound down in any manner. The victim was present at various public places but never raised an alarm nor did she resist the applicant. The conduct of the victim shows that she was a consenting party.

¶11Medical evidence to corroborate commission of rape by the applicant with the victim has not been produced by the prosecution.

¶12The applicant does not have any criminal history apart from this case.

¶13The applicant is not a flight risk. The applicant being a law abiding citizen has always cooperated with the investigation and undertakes to join the trial proceedings. There is no possibility of his influencing witnesses, tampering with the evidence or reoffending. In the light of the preceding discussion and without making any observations on the merits of the case, the bail application is allowed. Let the applicant-Sobhit be released on bail in the aforesaid case crime number, on furnishing a personal bond and two sureties each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the court below. The following conditions be imposed in the interest of justice:-

(i) The applicant will not tamper with the evidence or influence any witness during the trial.

(ii) The applicant will appear before the trial court on the date fixed, unless personal presence is exempted. Order Date :- 6.11.2023 Jaswant High Court of Judicature at Allahabad