IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM
Bail Appl..No. 3523 of 2009()
1. SREEKUMAR, S/O.SUNDARESAN,
... Petitioner
Vs
1. STATE OF KERALA REPRESENTED BY THE
... Respondent
2. PUBLIC PROSECUTOR, HIGH COURT OF
For Petitioner :SRI.K.RAMACHANDRAN
For Respondent :PUBLIC PROSECUTOR
The Hon'ble MR. Justice K.T.SANKARAN
Dated :01/07/2009
O R D E R
K.T.SANKARAN, J.
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B.A.No.3523 of 2009
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Dated this the 1st day of July, 2009
ORDER
This is an application for bail under Section 439 of the Code of
Criminal Procedure. The petitioner is the first accused in Crime No.454
of 2009 of Cheranelloor Police Station.
2. The offences alleged against the petitioner are under
Sections 419, 420, 465 and 468 read with section 12 of the Passports
Act. The petitioner was arrested on 28.5.2009 and he is in judicial
custody.
3. The gist of the allegation is that the petitioner Sreekumar
obtained another Indian Passport under the name Biju Gopalan and
conducted a partnership business with his wife as partner in Dubai. It
is alleged that the petitioner promised high returns to the defacto
complainant, in case money is invested in his business concern.
Accordingly, the defacto complainant invested a sum of Rs.65.38 lakhs
in the business concern run by the first accused along with his wife. It
is also alleged that few cheques were given as a security. The cheques
were also dishonoured. Originally, the defacto complainant filed a
complaint before the Magistrate’s court which was forwarded to the
BA No. 3523/2009 2
police for investigation under Section 156(3) of the Code of Criminal
Procedure. Accordingly, the crime was registered. During
investigation, it was revealed that a second passport was obtained by
the petitioner forging certain documents with the help of the accused
Nos.3 to 5. Those persons were also included as the accused persons.
The investigation is going on.
4. The learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that the
petitioner is suffering from diabetes, dyslipidemia and non alcoholic
fatty liver disease. A certificate dated 19th June 2009 issued by
Jothydev’s, Diabetes & Research Centre, Thiruvananthapuram, is also
produced in support of the contention.
5. The petitioner is in judicial custody since 28.5.2009. The
investigation has progressed to a great extent. Learned counsel for
the petitioner submitted that in so far as the monetary transactions
between the defacto complainant and the petitioner are concerned,
they have reached at a consensus as to the amount to be paid to the
defacto complainant.
6. Taking into account the facts and circumstances of the
case, the duration of the judicial custody undergone by the petitioner,
the nature of the offence and the present stage of investigation, I am
of the view that bail can be granted to the petitioner.
BA No. 3523/2009 3
7. The petitioner shall be released on bail on his executing
bond for Rs.50,000/- with two solvent sureties for the like amount to
the satisfaction of the Judicial Magistrate of the First Class-II,
Ernakulam, subject to the following conditions:
a) The petitioner shall report before the investigating officer
between 9 A.M. and 11 A.M. on all Mondays, till the final
report is filed or until further orders;
b) The petitioner shall appear before the investigating officer for
interrogation as and when required;
c) The petitioner shall not try to influence the prosecution witnesses
or tamper with the evidence;
d) The petitioner shall not commit any offence or indulge in any
prejudicial activity while on bail;
e) In case of breach of any of the conditions mentioned above, the
bail shall be liable to be cancelled.
The Bail Application is allowed as above.
K.T.SANKARAN,
JUDGE
csl