Criminal Misc. No. M-29966 of 2018 -1-
IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH
Criminal Misc. No. M-29966 of 2018
Date of decision : May 03, 2019
Karamjit Singh
….Petitioner
versus
State of Punjab
….Respondent
Coram: Hon’ble Mr. Justice Fateh Deep Singh
Present : Mr. Sant Pal Singh Sidhu, Advocate, for the petitioner
Mr. Saurav Khurana, DAG, Punjab for the State
Mr. Naveen Batra, Advocate, for the complainant
Fateh Deep Singh, J. (Oral)
This first regular bail application under Section 439
Cr.P.C. before this Court filed by Karamjit Singh is in case bearing
FIR No. 13 dated 24.2.2018 under Sections 307, Section406, Section498A and Section34
IPC, Police Station Behram, District SBS Nagar.
The facts are as under:-
The present case was got registered by the complainant-
wife Hardeep Kaur alleging that marriage between the complainant
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and the accused was solemnized on 23.8.2015 and out of which a
girl child was born on 5.6.2016. It is further stated by the
complainant that it was second marriage of the petitioner as well as
of the complainant who alleged that the accused and his family were
greedy and demanded dowry and inspite of repeated intervention by
the respectables the accused used to ill-treat the complainant along
with his sister Kulvir Kaur and mother Harbhajan Kaur. It is alleged
that on 11.3.2017 at 9.00 AM all these three accused caught hold of
the complainant while she was in kitchen wherein the petitioner
poured kerosene oil and set her on fire. Thereafter the victim was
got admitted in the hospital with 40% burn injuries leading to the
registration of the present case on 24.2.2018 and arrest of the
petitioner on 25.2.2018.
Mr. Sant Pal Singh Sidhu, learned counsel for the
petitioner submits that the petitioner is behind the bars for more than
one year two months and that the occurrence has taken place on
11.3.2017 whereas FIR has come about after more than one year on
24.2.2018 and thus sought to hammer home the point that there is
false implication of the petitioner on account of matrimonial dispute
and that the trial is not likely to be concluded in near future.
Mr. Saurav Khurana, DAG, Punjab assisted by Mr.
Naveen Batra, Advocate, for the complainant have strongly opposed
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the grant of the bail on the grounds that surgery had to be performed
on the complainant who remained hospitalized from 11.3.2017 to
21.5.2017 and in view of heinousness of the offence and seriousness
of the allegations together with the fact that if allowed bail, the
petitioner might influence the witnesses does not calls for grant of
bail.
Appreciating the submissions as is there and could not be
displaced by the two sides, the petitioner husband had earlier
instituted on 23.10.2017 a petition under Sectionsection 11 of the Hindu
Marriage Act, 1955 for nullification of the marriage between the
petitioner and the complainant whereas the present FIR has been got
registered subsequent thereto on 24.2.2018. More-so admittedly the
occurrence has taken place on 11.3.2017 and therefore, this
inordinate delay and the fact that inspite of having been discharged
on 21.5.2017, the complainant has not initiated any action are
matters of much relevance. It is not displaced that the complainant
as well as the petitioner were previously married and has
subsequently entered into this wedlock on 23.8.2015 and thus, a
debatable issue arises over the cause of this occurrence as to
demand of dowry. The petitioner is behind the bars for more than
one year and two months. The trial is not likely to be concluded in
near future. No useful purpose will be served by retaining the
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petitioner in jail. Accordingly, he is ordered to be released on regular
bail to the satisfaction of learned Chief Judicial Magistrate/Duty
Magistrate, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (Nawanshahr).
The present petition stands disposed off accordingly.
The observations made herein above shall have no
bearing on the merits of the case as these are purely for the disposal
of the present bail application.
( Fateh Deep Singh )
May 03, 2019 Judge
‘tiwana’
Whether speaking/reasoned ? Yes/No
Whether Reportable ? Yes/No
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