Person Out On Regular Bail Can Be Granted Anticipatory Bail In Added Sections If He Isn't Misusing Liberty: Allahabad High Court

The Allahabad High Court has observed that a person who has already been granted regular bail under Section 439 of CrPC and if it found that he has not misused the liberty, then he may be granted anticipatory bail under Section 438 of CrPC in connection with added sections related to the same crime.

With this, the bench of Justice Krishan Pahal granted anticipatory bail to one Shahzad in connection with the offence under Section 3/7 of The Essential Commodities Act.

Essentially, he was earlier granted bail by the Sessions Judge, Saharanpur in February 2022 under Sections 379, 427 IPC, Sections 15, 16 of The Petroleum and Minerals Pipeline (Acquisition of Users in Land) Act, Section 3/4 of the Exclusive Substances Act and 3/4 of The Prevention of Damages to Public Property Act.

In that very matter, after the investigation, a final report was submitted in the added Sections 3/7 of the Essential Commodities Act. Therefore, seeking anticipatory bail in those sections as well, he moved to the High Court.

His Counsel argued that the abovementioned sections were added just to frustrate the case of the applicant, so that he may be sent behind the bars. It was also argued that once the applicant had been admitted to regular bail, there was nothing on record to suggest that he had misused it or he had committed any other offence.

In this regard, the Apex Court's judgments in the case of Bhadresh Bipinbhai Sheth vs. State of Gujarat & Another 2016 (1) SCC (Cri) 240 and Manoj Suresh Jadhav & Ors. vs. The State of Maharashtra, 2018 SCC OnLine SC 3428 were also referred to, wherein the applicants therein were enlarged on anticipatory bail in the added sections after being enlarged on regular bail

Taking into account the case and arguments advanced, the Court noted that it was true that the applicant was enlarged on bail in the said F.I.R. and he has not misused it during the investigation and no apprehension of tampering with evidence had been raised by the A.G.A, therefore, the Court opined that sending him behind bars again in the added sections would be of no fruitful use.

Consequently, the applicant was found to be entitled to be enlarged on anticipatory bail, and thus, the anticipatory bail application was allowed and it was ordered that the applicant be released forthwith in the crime on anticipatory bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs.50,000/- and two sureties each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the court concerned.

Case title - Shahzad v. State of U.P. [CRIMINAL MISC ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION US 438 CR.P.C. No. - 9391 of 2022]

Case Citation: 2022 LiveLaw (AB) 456

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