Rajiya Alias Raju v. State of U.P. Thru. Secy. Home Deptt. Lko. and Others

Court No. - 10 Case :- CRIMINAL MISC. WRIT PETITION No. - 5230 of 2023 Petitioner :- Rajiya Alias Raju Respondent :- State Of U.P. Thru. Secy. Home Deptt. Lko. And Others Counsel for Petitioner :- Amit Kumar Counsel for Respondent :- G.A. Hon'ble Mrs. Sangeeta Chandra,J. Hon'ble Mrs. Jyotsna Sharma,J.

¶1Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned A.G.A. for the State.

¶2Supplementary affidavit has been filed by learned counsel for the petitioner which is taken on record.

¶3This petition has been filed by the petitioner for the following main prayer:

(i) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Certiorari to quash the impugned First Information Report dated

28.06.2023, lodged at Police Station Kothi, District-Barabanki, registered at case crime no. 0255/2023 under section 3 (1) U.P. Gangster and Anti Social Activities (Prevention) Act, (contained in Annexure no.1)

(ii) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus commanding and directing the opposite party no.4 not to arrest the petitioner in connection with First Information Report dated 28.06.2023, lodged at Police Station Kothi, District-Barabanki, registered at case crime no. 0255/2023 under section 3 (1) U.P. Gangster and Anti Social Activities (Prevention) Act, (contained in Annexure no.1)

¶4This Court has perused the gang chart. It is submitted that charge sheet has been prepared against the petitioner also in the base case, only thereafter, the gang chart has been prepared and approved by the competent authority.

¶5The counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner is a lady and therefore, she cannot be implicated as a gangster as she has been bailed out by the court concerned in the base case.

¶6Per contra, learned A.G.A. has vehemently opposed the writ petition and submitted that even though the petitioner has been accorded bail in the case as shown in the gang chart, but the law is already settled that even on the basis of solitary case proceeding under the Gangster Act may be drawn. In this regard, he has placed reliance upon the judgment passed by Hon'ble the Division Bench in Criminal Misc. Writ Petition No. 4622 of 2019 (Somvir Vs. State of U.P. and 2 others) as well as in many judgments by this Court, wherein it is propounded that even a single case, if fulfills the category of offences given under Section 2(b) (i) to (xv) of Act and is being committed by gang defined under Section 2 (b) or gangster defined under Section 2 (c) of the Act, may be basis for registration of case crime number for offence punishable under Section 3(1) of U.P. Gangster and Anti Social Activities (Prevention) Act. Therefore, the contention of petitioner that based on one case, the imposition of Section 3(1) of Gangster Act is not leviable, would have no bearing.

¶7The learned A.G.A. has referred to the the judgment rendered by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Shraddha Gupta Versus State of Uttar Pradesh and others, 2022 SCC OnLine SC 514, wherein the Apex Court had an occasion to consider as to whether prosecution under the Gangster Act can be initiated against a person even in case of single offence/FIR/charge sheet for any of the anti-social activities mentioned in Section 2(b) of the Gangster Act. The relevant portion of the order reads thus: "On a fair reading of the definitions of 'Gang' contained in Section 2(b) and 'Gangster' contained in Section 2(c) of the Gangsters Act, a 'Gangster' means a member or leader or organiser of a gang including any person who abets or assists in the activities of a gang enumerated in clause (b) of Section 2, who either acting singly or collectively commits and indulges in any of the anti-social activities mentioned in Section 2(b) can be said to have committed the offence under the Gangsters Act and can be prosecuted and punished for the offence under the Gangsters Act. There is no specific provision under the Gangsters Act, 1986 like the specific provisions under the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act, 1999 and the Gujarat Control of Terrorism and Organized Crime Act, 2015 that while prosecuting an accused under the Gangsters Act, there shall be more than one offence or the FIR/charge sheet. As per the settled position of law, the provisions of the statute are to be read and considered as it is. Therefore, considering the provisions under the Gangsters Act, 1986 as they are, even in case of a single offence/FIR/charge sheet, if it is found that the accused is a member of a 'Gang' and has indulged in any of the anti-social activities mentioned in Section 2(b) of the Gangsters Act...Therefore, so far as the Gangsters Act, 1986 is concerned, there can be prosecution against a person even in case of a single offence/FIR/charge sheet for any of the anti-social activities mentioned in Section 2(b) of the Act provided such an anti-social activity is by violence, or threat or show of violence, or intimidation, or coercion or otherwise with the object of disturbing public order or of gaining any undue temporal, pecuniary, material or other advantage for himself or any other person."

¶8Considering the facts and circumstances as well as the judgments cited above, we are also of the opinion that even on the basis of solitary case the provisions of Gangster Act can be imposed and, as such, we are not inclined to interfere in the matter.

¶9The writ petition is dismissed leaving it open for the petitioner to apply before the competent court for bail as permissible under law and in accordance with law. Order Date :- 18.11.2023 Sumit Kumar High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, Lucknow Bench