Abdurahiman vs State Of Kerala

Shircy V, J

Application for regular bail.

The petitioner is the accused in Crime No. 228 of 2021 of Changaramkulam Police Station, Malappuram District registered for the offences

punishable under Sections 376(2) (n), 420 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code.

3. The prosecution case in brief is also follows:

The petitioner is running an institution by name IBAM Academy at Edappal. The defacto complainant was an employee of the said institution. She

was working there from the year 2019. While so, 20.09.2019 at about 2.30 p.m., the accused had committed rape on her and thereafter threatened her

that he is in possession of her nude photographs and if she divulge about the incident to anyone, he would circulate the same and thereby sexually

abused her on various days. He had also obtained an amount of Rs.2,50,000/- and 7 sovereigns of gold ornaments from her by putting her under threat

and failed to return the same and thus cheated her.

Thus, he committed the aforesaid offences.

According to the learned counsel for the petitioner, he has been falsely implicated in the case in order to wreck vengeance upon him. In fact he was

running the institution and was collecting fees from the students who joined there to attend the course. While so, the defacto complainant directly

received money from certain students who approached her to join the institution and thus misappropriated the money. When he questioned her, she

has implicated him in this case and thus he is languishing in jail from the date of his arrest on 12.06.2021. The learned counsel has also submitted that

he has got an information from the family of the petitioner that his father expired yesterday and permission has been granted to him by the Judicial

First Class Magistrate, Edappal to attend the funeral ceremony of his father.

The learned Public Prosecutor opposed the application contending that very serious allegations are there against this petitioner, as he used to

threaten her with her naked photographs which he captured somehow or other. Hence, granting of bail before completion of the investigation will

definitely affect the further investigation of the case which is going on, is the submission of the learned Public Prosecutor.

The alleged incident of rape was on 20.09.2019. It is significant to note that the crime has been registered at her instance only on 11.06.2021. I

have gone though the statement of the defacto complainant recorded under Section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure produced before court by

the learned Public Prosecutor. But I could not find any valid reason for the delay in lodging the complaint nearly after two years. Of course, delay in

rape cases is of no significance, but there must be sufficient, plausible and valid reason for the delay in lodging the complaint. Here, such an

explanation is conspicuously absent in her statement. Moreover, the records would reveal that she continued in the institution till the lodging of the

complaint on 11.06.2021. But whatever that be, now the investigation of the case has progressed considerably. The prosecution has also no case that

he is having any criminal antecedents.

Considering all these facts and that the investigation is nearing completion, I think that further detention of this petitioner in custody may not be

required for the investigating agency. Moreover, his father had expired yesterday.

Therefore, he can be enlarged on bail subject to the following conditions:

Therefore, this application is allowed subject to the following conditions:

(i) The petitioner shall be released on bail on his executing a bond for a sum of Rs.1,00,000/- (Rupees One lakh only) with two solvent sureties for the like sum each to

the satisfaction of the court having jurisdiction.

(ii) The petitioner shall appear before the Investigating Officer for interrogation as and when required by him, in writing.

(iii) The petitioner shall not directly or indirectly, make any inducement, threat or promise to any person acquainted with the facts of the case so as to dissuade him

from disclosing such facts to the court or to any police officer or tamper with the evidence.

 (iv) The petitioner shall not commit any offence while on bail.

In case of violation of any of the above conditions, the learned Magistrate is empowered to cancel the bail in accordance with the law.