P&H HC grants bail to accused, in murder case, as except for disclosure statement of co-accused there was no other incriminating evidence

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Read Order: Chuchhwinder Singh Alias Saswinder Singh Alias Chinda Vs. State Of Punjab

Tulip Kanth

Chandigarh, November 2, 2021: The Punjab and Haryana High Court has recently granted regular bail in a murder case as except for the disclosure statement of the co-accused mentioning the role of the petitioner, there was no other incriminating evidence against the petitioner. 

Herein, the second petition was filed under Section 439 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 for grant of regular bail to the petitioner in FIR registered under Sections 302, 201, 120-B of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.The first petition for grant of regular bail was dismissed as withdrawn.

From the petitioner’s side it was mainly submitted that the petitioner had been in custody since July 10,2018 and there was a delay of one month in lodging the FIR. 

The complainant is an educated person – a Government teacher – however, for one month since his nephew went missing, not even a missing person report was lodged. The petitioner’s counsel further contended that besides the disclosure statements of the co-accused there was no other incriminating evidence against the petitioner.

In the status-report, filed on behalf of the State, it had been stated that the petitioner had surrendered on July 9,2018 while proceedings under Sections 82/83 CrPC were going on against him. 

It was further stated in the status-report that the co-accused Geja Singh and Anu Rani @ Amni had suffered disclosure statements separately to the effect that on September 30,2017 they along with Avtar Singh @ Sonu and the petitioner took Rajat Kumar in a car to the motor of Shaminder Singh where they took liquor together and Rajat Kumar was served more liquor and then his legs and arms were tied with a yellow scarf and he was put in the car and taken to the motor of Avtar Singh @ Sonu and then all four gave severe beatings to him and when he became unconscious he was taken to Ghaggar River where he was murdered with a dagger and his body was thrown in the river by Anu Rani and the petitioner and his clothes were also thrown there. The skeleton of the deceased was recovered at the behest of the co-accused.

The Bench of Justice Alka Sarin was of the opinion that except for the disclosure statement of the co-accused mentioning the role of the petitioner, there was no other incriminating evidence against the petitioner. 

The Court noted that the skeleton of the deceased was recovered by the co-accused and the dagger used in the commission of the crime was also recovered from the house of a co- accused. The petitioner in the present case had been in custody since July 10,2018 and the status report did not mention about his involvement in any other case. The complainant in the present case stood examined and out of 29 witnesses, only 12 have been examined till date.

Thus, the Bench directed that the petitioner be released on bail subject to his furnishing bail bonds/surety bonds to the satisfaction of the Illaqa Magistrate/Duty Magistrate/Trial Court concerned.

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