Ranjith vs State Of Kerala

Gopinath P, J

This is an application for regular bail.

The petitioner is the accused in Crime No.175 of 2021 of Pavaratty Police Station, Thrissur District, alleging commission of offences under Sections 376(1), 450 and 506(II) of the Indian Penal Code. The allegation against the petitioner is that he and the de-facto complainant are immediate neighbours and they became close over social media and that at the instance of the petitioner, certain intimate photos of the de-facto complainant were shared with the petitioner and using the same, he had threatened her and compelled her to have sexual intercourse with him on two occasions namely on 10.02.2020 and again on 15.12.2020 and thereby committed the aforesaid offences.

The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the relationship between the petitioner and the de-facto complainant were purely consensual (if at all) and this is evident from the fact that even going by the version given by the de-facto complainant, the alleged incident of rape on 15.12.2020 happened at the dead of night at the house of the de-facto complainant and that the de-facto complainant had herself opened the door of the house for the petitioner. It is submitted that the petitioner and the de-facto complainant were close friends and there was no other relationship between them.

The learned Public Prosecutor would submit that the allegations against the petitioner are serious and it is submitted that the investigation is in progress and the mobile phone of the petitioner is yet to be recovered. It is submitted that on 15.12.2020, the petitioner was caught from the house of the de-facto complainant and there occurred a scuffle between the petitioner and the husband of the de-facto complainant. It is submitted that according to the petitioner, his mobile phone was lost in the said scuffle and he had gone back to his place of employment in Dubai immediately thereafter.

The learned counsel for the petitioner also points out that in the scuffle which happened on 15.12.2020, the petitioner had suffered serious injuries as is evident from Annexure - A medical certificate of the petitioner.

Having regard to the facts and circumstances of the case and considering the fact that the petitioner has been in custody from 23.10.2021, I am of the view that the petitioner can be granted bail subject to conditions.

In the result, this bail application is allowed and it is directed that the petitioner shall be released on bail subject to the following conditions:

(1) The petitioner shall execute bond for a sum of Rs.50,000/- (Rupees fifty thousand only) with two solvent sureties for the like sum to the satisfaction of the Jurisdictional Court;

(2) Petitioner shall appear before the investigating officer in Crime No.175 of 2021 of Pavaratty Police Station, Thrissur District, on every Saturday at 11 am until further orders;

(3) The petitioner shall not attempt to interfere with the investigation or to influence or intimidate the victim or any witness in Crime No.175 of 2021 of Pavaratty Police Station, Thrissur District;

(4) The petitioner shall not enter the local limits of the Paravatty Police Station where the de facto complainant is residing except for the purpose of complying with condition No.2 above;

(5) The petitioner shall surrender his passport before the Jurisdictional Court;

(6) The petitioner shall not involve in any other crime while on bail.

If any of the aforesaid conditions are violated, the investigating officer in Crime No.175 of 2021 of Pavaratty Police Station, Thrissur District, may file an application before the Jurisdictional Court for cancellation of bail.