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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU
DATED THIS THE 26TH DAY OF NOVEMBER, 2019
BEFORE
THE HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE K.N.PHANEENDRA
CRIMINAL PETITION NO.7933/2019
BETWEEN:
Santhosh Kumar
S/o Siddaiah
Aged about 32 years
R/at No.115, 2nd Cross
Nelamangala Town
Bengaluru District – 572 123
…Petitioner
(By Sri Manjegowda, Advocate for
Sri Chandrashekara K A, Advocate)
AND:
The State of Karnataka by
The Police of
Nelamangala Town Police Station
Bengaluru District – 572 123
Represented by its
State Public Prosecutor
High Court of Karnataka
Bengaluru – 560 001
…Respondent
(By Sri Honnappa, HCGP)
This Criminal Petition is filed under Section 439 of
Cr.P.C., praying to enlarge the petitioner on bail in
Cr.No.112/2019 of Nelamangala Town Police Station,
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Bengaluru City for the offence punishable under Section
498A, Section306 read with Section 34 of IPC.
This Criminal Petition coming on for Orders this day,
the Court made the following:
ORDER
Heard Sri Manjegowda, Advocate, on behalf of Sri
K.A.Chandrashekara, learned counsel for the petitioner and
the learned HCGP for the respondent-State. Perused the
records.
2. The petitioner is arraigned as accused No.1 in
C.C.No.2637/2019 on the file of the Additional Civil Judge
and JMFC, Nelamangala for the offences punishable under
Section 498A and Section306 read with Section 34 of IPC.
3. The entire charge sheet papers discloses that
there is no dispute with regard to the marriage between
the accused No.1/petitioner herein and the deceased
Vinutha R.G., which took place on 07.11.2016. Thereafter,
they lived happily for some time. It is alleged that the
deceased Vinutha has developed some intimacy with
another person and in this context there was some
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telephonic conversation between her and said third person
which came to the knowledge of the accused No.1 and
other accused persons. The differences arose between the
husband and wife was resolved by virtue of the
compromise as the deceased gave her undertaking that
she would not continue the said conversation with any
other person over phone. But inspite of it, it is alleged
that the accused are unhappy with her conduct, they were
ill-treating and harassing her. During the course of
investigation the police have also recorded the statement
of the mother of the victim which discloses that on the
previous day of the incident, there was some pooja in the
house of the sister of deceased by name Chaitra and said
lady has invited all the members of the family of the
accused to the said pooja. But the deceased did not go
there. However the father-in-law of the deceased by name
Siddappa went to the pooja. On the next day Chaitra
enquired as to why deceased did not come to the said
function, then she disclosed that her husband directed her
and her mother-in-law not to go to said pooja.
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4. Abruptly, on the next day the information was
received by the mother of the victim to the effect that the
said deceased/victim has committed suicide in her
matrimonial home and when there was nobody inside the
house. It is alleged that only due to ill-treatment and
harassment by the accused, she has committed suicide by
hanging herself.
5. The above said factual aspects at this stage
creates a doubt whether said lady has committed suicide
only because of any ill-treatment and that too the ill-
treatment was such an extent which was sufficient to drive
a lady to commit suicide. The sensitivity of the said lady
as to how she was responding with the other members of
the family and how the members were responding to the
conduct of the deceased. All these things play a dominant
role in such cases, which has to be established during the
course of full dressed trial.
6. Under the above said circumstances, as the
petitioner has already been arrested and he has been in
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judicial custody and charge sheet has already been filed,
on stringent conditions the petitioner can be enlarged on
bail. Hence the following:
ORDER
The Petition is allowed. Consequently, the
petitioner/accused No.1 shall be released on bail in
Cr.No.112/2019 of Nelamangala Town Police Station,
Bengaluru (C.C.No.2637/2019 pending on the file of
Additional Civil Judge and JMFC Court, Nelamangala) for
the offence punishable under Sections 498A and Section306 read
with Section 34 of IPC, subject to the following conditions:
i. The petitioner shall execute a personal
bond for a sum of Rs.1,00,000/-(One
Lakh only) with one surety for the like-
sum to the satisfaction of the
jurisdictional Court.
ii. The petitioner shall not indulge in
tampering the prosecution witnesses.
iii. The petitioner shall appear before the
jurisdictional court on all the future
hearing dates unless exempted by the
court for any genuine cause.
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iv. The petitioner shall not leave the
jurisdiction of the trial Court without prior
permission of the court till the case
registered against him is disposed of.
Sd/-
JUDGE
Kmv/-
