Ashok Balwant Patil vs The State Of Maharashtra on 23 February, 2024

[Cites 13, Cited by 0]

Bombay High Court

Ashok Balwant Patil vs The State Of Maharashtra on 23 February, 2024

Bench: N.J.Jamadar

2024:BHC-AS:8910

aba 865 of 2019.doc

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION NO.865 OF 2019

Prashant Naresh Patil ... Applicant
versus
The State of Maharashtra ... Respondent
WITH
CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO.659 OF 2019
IN
ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION NO.865 OF 2019

Ashok Balwant Patil ... Intervener
and
Prashant Naresh Patil ... Applicant
versus
The State of Maharashtra ... Respondent
WITH
ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION NO.867 OF 2019

Mohan Madhukar Patil and Ors. ... Applicants
versus
The State of Maharashtra ... Respondent
WITH
CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO.661 OF 2019
IN
ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION NO.867 OF 2019

Ashok Balwant Patil ... Intervener
and
Mohan Madhukar Patil and Ors. ... Applicants
versus
The State of Maharashtra ... Respondent
WITH
INTERIM APPLICATION NO.98 OF 2020
IN
ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION NO.867 OF 2019

Ashok Balwant Patil ... Intervener
and

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Mohan Madhukar Patil and Ors. ... Applicants
versus
The State of Maharashtra ... Respondent
WITH
ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION NO.878 OF 2019

Kunal Shashikant Gudekar and Anr. ... Applicants
versus
The State of Maharashtra ... Respondent
WITH
CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO.662 OF 2019
IN
ANTICIPATORY BAIL APPLICATION NO.878 OF 2019

Ashok Balwant Patil ... Intervener
and
Kunal Shashikant Gudekar and Anr. ... Applicants
versus
The State of Maharashtra ... Respondent

Mr. Sandesh Patil with Ms. Divya Pawar for Applicant in ABA 865 of 2019.
Mr. Sudeep Pasbola i/by Mr. Rahul Arote, Mr. Sushant Patil, Mr. Ayush Pasbola, for
Applicant in ABA 867 of 2019 and 878 of 2019.
Mrs. Geeta P. Mulekar, APP for the State.
Mr. Aabad Ponda, Sr. Advocate with Mr. Vinayak Patil i/by Mr. Tarun Sharma for
Respondent No.2 - complainant in ABA 867 of 2019.
Mr. Vinayak Patil i/by Mr. Tarun Sharma for first informant in ABA 878 of 2019.
Mr. Chaitnya Pendse with Mr. Vinayak Patil i/by Mr. Tarun Sharma, for Applicant in
APPln 659 and 661 of 2019.

CORAM : N.J.JAMADAR, J.
RESERVED ON : 7 FEBRUARY 2024
PRONOUNCED ON : 23 FEBRUARY 2024

P.C.

1. These applications are preferred for pre-arrest bail in connection with

C.R.No.292 of 2018 registered with Navghar Police Station for the offences

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punishable under Sections 120B, 198, 199, 200, 205, 420, 467, 468, 471, 472, 477A of

the Indian Penal Code, 1860.

2. Abhinav Shetkari Shikshan Mandal is a public charitable trust registered

under the provisions of the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950. Applicant Nos.1 to

4 in ABA No.867 of 2019, Sharad Ramchandra Patil - applicant No.5, who passed

away during the pendency of the application, and Tulshidas D. Mhatre were elected as

Managing Committee members of the said Trust for a period of three years with effect

from 9 January 2011 to 9 January 2014. Mohan Madhukar Patil - Applicant No.1 in

ABA No.867 of 2019 was elected as the Executive Chairman; Vasudev Bhaskar Patil -

applicant No.2, as Treasurer, and Dilip Ramchandra Patil - Applicant No.4, as

Secretary. The Trust runs a number of educational institutes.

3. The applicants claimed, they were in the management of the day to day

affairs of the said Trust. Tulshidas D. Mhatre and other four persons, who claimed to

be the trustees of the Trust, filed a complaint before the learned Judicial Magistrate,

First Class, Thane, alleging, inter alia, that the applicant Nos.1 to 5 and Prashant

Naresh Patil, an employee of the Trust, and the applicant in ABA No.865 of 2019, and

Kunal Shashikant Gudekar and Numan Abdul Rehman, Partners of M/s. Ring India

System ( Ring India) and the applicants in ABA No.878 of 2019, in pursuance of a

criminal conspiracy, siphoned off huge amount from the accounts of the Trust and, in

the process, committed various offences punishable under Sections 120B, 198, 199,

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200, 205, 420, 467, 468, 471, 472, 477A of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.

4. The learned JMFC by an order dated 21 July 2018 was persuaded to

direct Navghar Police to register the offence and conduct investigation. Pursuant to

the said direction, C.R.No.292 of 2018 came to be registered.

5. Several allegations have been made against the applicants. The

gravamen of indictment is that during the tenure of the Managing Committee, there

was large scale mis-management, mis-appropriation of the funds, fraud and forgery of

the record and use of the forged documents as genuine for the purpose of cheating.

6. The principal allegations against the applicants are that :

(a) accused Nos.1 to 4 had mis-appropriated a sum of Rs.1,38,00,000/-

which was the balance of the loan raised by the previous managing committee from

Bank of Maharashtra without obtaining the prior permission of the Charity

Commissioner, and did not inform the said fact to the Managing Committee of the

Trust.

(b) There was mis-appropriation of huge amount of Rs.83,95,920/- on

the pretext of purchasing computers, softwares, digital smart ID cards, AV rooms,

CCTV cameras, etc. The contract was allegedly awarded to Ring India, of which

Kunal Shashikant Gudekar (A8) and Numan Abdul Rehman (A9) were the partners,

without inviting tender. Nor any contract was signed. Accused Nos.1 to 6 and 8 and 9

siphoned off the huge amount from the accounts of the Trust without supply of the

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material and rendering services. Several complaints were made by the teachers and

parents regarding the non-supply of the computers, peripherals and services. Forged

bills were allegedly raised to mis-appropriate the amount.

from the non-resident Indians to the tune of Rs.50 Lakhs and paid commission to the

broker for raising the funds from the NRI.

(d) Accused Nos.1 to 6 were also involved in mis-appropriation of the

grant provided by the State Government under Midday Meal Scheme to the students.

Schools were required to cook and serve Midday Meal to the students by appointing

contractors. Allegedly the students were not served Midday Meal. False and

fabricated documents were prepared to show that a contract was given to Womens

Group (Mahila Bachat Gat) and thereby huge funds were mis-appropriated.

(e) In addition, there are allegations of mis-management of the affairs

of the Trust by acts of commission or omission in the nature of non-compliance of the

statutory requirements in the matter of auditing the accounts of the Trust and

submitting the audited reports, submissions of forged and fabricated documents in

support of false change reports before the Assistant Charity Commissioner, opening of

bank accounts in the name of the Trust with various Banks without permission of the

Managing Committee and not holding the annual general meeting in accordance with

the rules etc.

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7. Upon registration of the FIR with the aforesaid allegations,

apprehending arrest the applicants had approached the Court of Session for pre-arrest

bail. Initially, it seems, interim relief was granted by the learned Additional Sessions

Judge. By orders dated 5 April 2019, the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Thane,

rejected the applications for pre-arrest bail and vacated the interim order dated 18

February 2018.

8. When the applications were listed before the Court on 10 April 2019,

this Court had granted ad-interim relief. Affidavits in reply have been filed on behalf

of the Respondent-State. Complainant Ashok Patil filed Intervention Applications and

opposed the relief of pre-arrest bail. Pursuant to the directions of this Court, in the

order dated 17 November 2022, an additional Affidavit in Reply came to be filed by the

Investigating Officer. Applicant - Mohan Madhukar Patil (A1) has filed further

affidavit to deal with the contentions in the additional affidavit.

9. In the backdrop of the aforesaid facts and pleadings, I have heard Mr.

Sudip Pasbola, learned Counsel for the Applicants in ABA 867 and 878 of 2019, Mr.

Sandesh Patil, learned Counsel for the Applicant in ABA 865 of 2019, Mrs. Geeta P.

Mulekar, learned APP for the State, Mr. Aabad Ponda, learned Senior Advocate for

the first informant in ABA 867 of 2019, Mr. Vinayak Patil, learned Counsel for the

Intervener - First informant in ABA 878 of 2019 and Mr. Chaitanya Pendse, learned

Counsel for the Intervener - first informant in ABA 865 of 2019. Learned Counsel

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took the Court through the material on record.

10. Mr. Pasbola submitted that the complainants have resorted to

prosecution to wreak vengeance as the applicant Nos.1 to 5 have been managing the

affairs of the Trust. Unsatiated by the proceedings instituted before the authorities

under the Public Trusts Act, 1950, complainant lodged a false complaint before the

learned Magistrate making omnibus, wild and baseless allegations. Taking the Court

through the documents, especially the Minutes of the meetings, Mr. Pasbola would

urge that most of the assertions in the complaint are demonstrably false.

11. Mr. Pasbola submitted that in the additional affidavit filed on behalf of

the State, pursuant to the directions by this Court, the custodial interrogation of the

applicants is sought on two count of charges. First, the alleged fraud and mis-

appropriation in awarding contract and making payment to Ring India in respect of

providing computers and technological services to the schools run by the Trust.

Second, the alleged mis-appropriation of the grant received from the State

Government under Midday Meal Scheme. Mr. Pasbola made a strenuous effort to

demonstrate that there is no prima facie material to substantiate the allegations on

either counts. On the first count, Mr. Pasbola submitted that the minutes of the

meeting dated 19 March 2015, especially the Resolution No.3, indicate that the

decision to award a contract to Ring India @ Rs.102 per students for providing smart

cards, computers, AV Room, Cameras, and software was taken unanimously. The

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members of the complainant party, including Ashok Patil - Intervener, were party to

the said resolution and also participated in the deliberations.

12. Mr. Pasbola submitted that the allegation that there was no agreement in

writing is also patently false as the agreements dated 30 March 2015 (pages 316 to 324)

evidence the award of the contract. It was further submitted that despite the

Committee having resolved to award the contract at Rs.102 per student, the

Management had negotiated with Ring India and paid only Rs.68 per student. Thus,

the allegations are false and motivated.

13. On the second count of alleged fraud in the Midday Meal Scheme, Mr.

Pasbola submitted that the allegation that there was no agreement between the Trust

and Womens Group, which provided cooked food to the students under the Scheme,

is belied by the copies of Agreements (pages 147 to 163) which evidence the contract

executed between the Trust and Womens Group/service providers.

14. As regards the allegation of sale of unused rice by the applicants, Mr.

Pasbola made a painstaking effort to draw home the point that though the sale of the

rice provided under the Midday Meal Scheme was irregular, yet there was no

criminality involved in the said act. The entire consideration received by the sale of

the rice was credited to the account of the Trust. Not a single paisa has been mis-

appropriated, urged Mr. Pasbola.

15. In any event, according to Mr. Pasbola, at this length of time, where the

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entire record is in the custody of the investigating agency and the applicants have co-

operated with the investigation, custodial interrogation of the applicants is not at all

warranted. Therefore, the orders of interim bail deserve to be made absolute.

16. Mr. Sandesh Patil, learned Counsel for the Applicant in ABA 865 of

2019 submitted that the applicant was appointed as a Clerk with the Trust. He was

entrusted with certain other responsibility by the office bearers of the Trust. There

are no allegation of mis-appropriation qua the applicant - Prashant. The prosecution

version, according to Mr. Patil, has changed over a period of time. All the documents

have been seized. The statements of the applicants have been recorded. In the

circumstances, the applicant who is an employee of the Trust, has been made a

scapegoat for the reason that he had performed tasks entrusted to him by the office

bearers.

17. Mrs. Mulekar, learned APP stoutly resisted the prayers for pre-arrest

bail. Taking the Court through the material on record, including the statements of

witnesses, Mrs. Mulekar would urge that a clear case of fraud and mis-appropriation

of not only the Trust's fund but also public money has been made out. Inviting

attention of the Court to the statement of the President of Madhumohan Janseva

Mahila Bachat Gat, with whom the Trust had allegedly entered into an agreement to

provide Midday Meal services, Mrs. Mulekar submitted that the applicant - Mohan

Madhukar Patil had set up the said womens group and by obtaining the documents and

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signed cheques from the office bearers, a sum of Rs.93,70,362/- was fraudulently

transferred to the account of Abhinav Trust. The statements of the employees of the

Trust were pressed into service to bolster up the submission that the documents were

forged to show that the agreements were executed with the Midday Meal service

providers. Attention of the Court was also invited to the statement of Sandesh Patil,

Store Keeper, and Transporters, and Purchaser, who stated that the rice meant for

Midday Meal was sold by the applicants.

18. Mrs. Mulekar made an endeavour to draw home the point that Ring

India was also a front of Mohan Patil (A1) and the funds of the trust were

systematically diverted by making a farce of providing computers and IT related

services. The circumstances pressed into service by the prosecution, adverted to

above, according to Mrs. Mulekar, clearly point to the complicity of the applicants.

19. Mr. Ponda, learned Senior Advocate urged that accused Nos.1 to 6 have

deprived the students the Midday Meal to satiate their greed. Taking the court

through the material on record, Mr. Ponda would urge, a clear case of systematic fraud

and diversion of funds is made out. Mr. Ponda submitted that the grant of pre-arrest

bail at the stage of investigation where serious allegations of fraud are supported by

reliable material, as in the case at hand, jeopardises the interest of investigation and

public justice. Since the allegations in the instant case, fall within the realm of the

economic offences, the decisions of the Supreme Court in the cases of P.

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Chidambaram V/s. Directorate of Enforcement 1 and Pratibha Manchanda and

Anr. V/s. State of Haryana and Anr. 2 govern the situation at hand. Since the

allegations of forgery are made, according to Mr. Ponda, the necessity of custodial

interrogation cannot be overemphasised.

20. Mr. Vinayak Patil and Mr. Chaitanya Pendse supplemented the

submissions of Mrs. Mulekar, learned APP and Mr. Ponda, learned Senior Advocate.

21. I have carefully considered the material on record and the submissions

canvassed across the bar. The aforesaid submissions and material are required to be

appreciated in the light of the fact that when a Public Charitable Trust is faction-

ridden, allegations are made thick and fast. Often the teaching staff and employees

take, or are forced to take, side of the rival factions. The allegations of forgery of the

record of the trust, especially the minutes of the meetings and the documents

tendered before the authorities under the Trust Act, 1950, are required to be appraised

keeping the aforesaid fractious relationship between the parties. However, where there

are clear allegations of fraud and misappropriation of funds, the persons charged

cannot wriggle out of the situation by taking refuge under such rivalry over the

management of the affairs of the trust.

22. As indicated above, there are two major set of allegations. First the

allegations with regard the siphoning of the amount of grant released by the

1 (2019) 9 SCC 24
2 (2023) 8 SCC 181

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government under the Midday Meal Scheme. The allegations are two fold. One, the

accused Nos. 1 to 6 forged the documents to create a facade of legitimate contract

executed with the womens group/the service providers who were to cook the food and

make the same available for the students. Second, the accused Nos. 1 to 6 had sold the

rice which was supplied by the government for the said purpose, in open market, and

thereby defrauded the government.

23. The material which has emerged during the course of investigation,

throws light on both the allegations. The documents relied upon by the accused Nos. 1

to 5 indicate that for the year 2011-2012 and onwords the contract to provide the

cooked food was purportedly given to Madhumohan Janseva Mahila Bachat Gat.

During the course of investigation, it transpired that the said womens' group was

allegedly set up by accused No. 1- Mohan Patil. The statement of Anjana Rathod, the

chairperson of the said womens' group reveals that the accused No. 1 was

instrumental in forming the said group. The accused No. 1 had got the documents

executed from the members of the said group with the assistance of Prashant Patil,

accused No. 6. The chairperson further states that she had not executed any

agreement with any of the schools run by the Trust to provide the said service nor the

womens group had ever provided the said services. She further states that the accused

No. 1- Mohan Patil had obtained signed blank cheques from her and during the period

2012 to 2018 a sum of Rs.93,70,362/- came to be transferred to the accounts of

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Abhinav Trust.

24. The aforesaid version of Anjana Rathod finds prima facie support in the

statements of the Principal/Head Mistress of four schools, who have stated before the

police that the agreements to provide Midday Meal Scheme, purportedly given to

Madhumohan Janseva Mahila Bachat Gat, were not executed by them and they were

unaware of any such contract. They further stated, when they inquired about the

same, Mohan Patil, accused No.1, prevailed upon them to concentrate on academic

matters.

25. Prima facie, the witnesses, who have purportedly signed the agreements

on behalf of the trust/school have disowned the same. In addition, the intrinsic

evidence of those agreements also militates against their genuineness.

26. The second allegation revolving around the sale of the rice meant for

Midday Meal for the students prima facie stands on an even better foundation. During

the course of investigation, the store keeper of the school at Goddev, Bhayander (E),

has stated that Mohan Patil, accused No. 1, had sold the rice to Ravi Jain and Sanjay

Reshanwala at the rate of 12 per kg and the money was directed to be deposited with

Prashant Patil, accused No. 6. Ravi Jain and Sanjay Reshanwala used to pick up the

rice from the premises of the school once a month or two.

27. The security guards have also stated that on the directions of Mohan

Patil, accused No. 1, tempos carrying the rice were allowed to enter and leave the

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school premises. For their record, the security guards had made entries in a note book

regarding the quantity of the rice removed from the school premises. The note book

which was seized under the seizure panchanama dated 13 th June, 2019 records that

2,51,237 kg (251 ton 237 kg) rice was removed from the school premises. Ravi Jain, the

alleged purchaser, also names Mohan Patil, accused No. 1, as the person who sold the

rice to him. There are statements of the drivers/transporters as well.

28. Mr. Pasbola, attempted to salvage the position by canvassing a

submission that the sale of rice provided by the government under Midday Meal

Scheme was definitely an illegality. However, the sale-proceeds were promptly

credited to the account of the trust. Thus, there was no mis-approprition of the funds,

as alleged by the prosecution. Mr. Pasbola also attempted to wriggle out of the

situation by canvassing a submission that the transfer of the amount of Rs.93,70,362/-

from the account of Madhumohan Janseva Mahila Bachat Gat (out of the grant

received from Government under mid-day meal scheme) was again for the benefit of

the trust. There was no personal aggrandizement.

29. The submission is required to be noted to be repelled. The endeavour of

Mr. Pasbola to make a virtue out of a vice, does not merit countenance. Firstly, non-

utilisation of the rice for the purpose for which it was made available by the

government was tainted with an element of criminality as the government was made to

believe that the rice was used for the stated purpose. Secondly, the sale of the rice was

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prima facie fraudulent. Thirdly, the transfer of the amount which was received by way

of the grant from the account of Madhumohan Janseva Mahila Bachat Gat to the

account of the Trust can only be said to be with a view to defraud both the government

and the Trust.

30. As regards the allegations of the siphoning of the funds of the trust

under the guise of providing computer and IT related services, during the course of

investigation, it transpired that the during the period 2015-2020 a sum of

Rs.1,95,13,326/- was credited to the account of Ring India of which the accused Nos. 8

and 9 were partners. For the work purportedly executed by Ring India the latter had

raised bills to the tune of Rs.2,96,47,600/-.

31. The prosecution has relied upon certain circumstances to bolster up a

case that Ring India was a front of accused No. 1 Mohan Patil. First, the alleged

resolution awarding the contract to Ring India was stated to be forged. Second, Ring

India was shown to have been registered on 15 th May, 2015, whereas the alleged

agreement to provide the services was executed on 13 th March, 2015. Third, Ring India

was shown to operate from Shop No. 103, Trinetra Apartment, Kharigaon, Bhayander

(E), which was owned by one of the relatives of accused No. 1. In addition, the

prosecution relies upon the statements of witnesses including the principal of a school

to buttress the allegation that without providing computers, IT gadgets, software and

services huge amounts were siphoned off. It is also alleged that the material supplied

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and services rendered, were not worth the money credited to Ring India.

32. In the additional Affidavit in Reply, the Investigating Officer had

adverted to the circumstances like the execution of the agreement between the Trust

and Ring India on 30 March 2015, though the said firm was registered later i.e. on 5

May 2015, and the office of the Ring India was situated at Shop No.104, Trinetra

Apartments, owned by one of the relatives of Mohan Patil (A1). The services shown

to have been provided by Ring India were alleged to be an eye wash for the purpose of

wrongful gain.

33. During the course of the submissions, learned Counsel for the first

informant - Intervener made an effort to show that the invoices raised by Ring India

were sham and bogus. In contrast, the applicants in ABA 878 of 2019 have placed on

record copies of the bills/invoices and challans raised by Ring India, particulars of the

staff deployed by Ring India and the documents to evidence the installation of

equipment and software as well as the supporting bills/receipts, which allegedly show

the procurement of the hardware and equipment by Ring India for deployment at the

schools.

34. In the face of the material on record, at this stage, the allegations are

required to be seen in the context of the prima facie complicity of the members of the

managing committee and Prashant Patil (A6), on the one part, and the accused Nos.8

and 9, partners of Ring India, on the other part.

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35. The allegations against the accused Nos.1 to 6 are that they had diverted

the funds of the Trust to the Ring India fraudulently. The tenor of the allegations qua

accused Nos.8 and 9 appears to be that accused Nos.8 and 9 either did not supply the

equipment and provide the services as contracted for, or the equipment supplied and

services rendered were defective and deficient.

36. The material on record, prima facie, indicates that there were supplies of

the computers, peripherals and software. Whether the supplies and services were

short and not of standard quality and thereby the Trust was defrauded by accused

Nos.8 and 9, prima facie, appears to be a matter for adjudication at the trial.

37. At this stage, the individual role of the accused Nos.1 to 6 deserves to be

appreciated. From the material on record, it becomes prima facie evident that Mohan

Patil (A1) was involved in the alleged misappropriation and siphoning off the funds

released by the State Government under the Midday Meal scheme. As noted above,

the role of Mohan Patil (A1) in the alleged fraud is borne out both by the statements of

the witnesses and the documents on record. The Chairperson of the womens'

Group, Store Keeper, the Purchasers and the Principals of the schools have all named

Mohan Patil (A1). Prima facie, the complicity of Mohan Patil (A1) is borne out by the

material which has emerged during the course of investigation. Conversely, accused

Nos.2 to 4, the other office bearers of the managing committee of the trust, prima

facie, do not appear to have been instrumental in the alleged fraudulent activities. It

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seems, Mohan Patil (A1) was wielding an effective and all pervasive control.

38. As regards Prashant Patil (A6), the submissions of Mr. Sandesh Patil that

he was only a Clerk with no authority to take executive decisions and deal in financial

matters, appears attractive at the first blush. However, the material on record, prima

facie, shows to the contrary. There are minutes of the meetings which record that the

applicant Prashant Patil (A6) was maintaining the accounts of the trust and even

participated in the meetings of the managing committee and responded to the

questions on, financial matters. The witnesses have also named Prashant Patil (A6) as

the person who used to receive the price of the rice sold in the open market. The

Chairperson of the Womens Group also named Prashant Patil as the person who had

collected the documents from the said group. Prima facie, Prashant Patil (A6) was

involved in the alleged fraudulent transactions along with Mohan Patil (A1).

39. At this stage, the necessity of arrest and custodial interrogation of the

applicants merit consideration. It is trite, a balance has to be struck between the

interests of fair and effective investigation and the protection of the accused from

humiliation and harassment, which an unjustified arrest entail.

40. In the case of Pratibha Manchanda and Anr. (supra), the Supreme

Court enunciated the competing interests which are required to be weighed in

deciding the prayer for pre-arrest bail. It was, inter alia, observed as under :

"21. The relief of Anticipatory Bail is aimed at safeguarding individual

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rights. While it serves as a crucial tool to prevent the misuse of the power of
arrest and protects innocent individuals from harassment, it also presents
challenges in maintaining a delicate balance between individual rights and the
interests of justice. The tight rope we must walk lies in striking a balance
between safeguarding individual rights and protecting public interest. While
the right to liberty and presumption of innocence are vital, the court must
also consider the gravity of the offence, the impact on society, and the need
for a fair and free investigation. The court's discretion in weighing these
interests in the facts and circumstances of each individual case becomes
crucial to ensure a just outcome." (emphasis supplied)

41. In the case of P. Chidambaram V/s. Directorate of Enforcement

(supra), the Supreme Court observed as under :

"83. Grant of anticipatory bail at the stage of investigation may
frustrate the investigating agency in interrogating the accused and in
collecting the useful information and also the materials which might have
been concealed. Success in such interrogation would elude if the accused
knows that he is protected by the order of the Court. Grant of anticipatory
bail, particularly in economic offences would definitely hamper the effective
investigation. Having regard to the materials said to have been collected by
the respondent Enforcement Directorate and considering the stage of the
investigation, we are of the view that if ti snot a fit case to grant anticipatory

bail." (emphasis supplied)

42. It is true, the applicants are on interim bail since the year 2018. However,

having regard to the nature of the accusation and the material on record, especially as

regards the embezzlement of the grant released by the State Government for Midday

Meal scheme, the custodial interrogation of the applicants - Mohan Patil (A1) and

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Prashant Patil (A6) appears necessary to facilitate effective and complete investigating,

unearth the fraud and also have the money trail.

43. To conclude, in the facts of the case at hand, having regard to the nature

and gravity of the offences, the severity of the punishment and the role attributed to

Mohan Patil (A1) and Prashant Patil (A6), in my considered view, despite the time lag

of six years from the date of the registration of the FIR, the custodial interrogation of

Mohan Patil (A1) and Prashant Patil (A6) is indispensable.

44. As regards the accused Nos.2 to 4, apart from the role attributed to

them, the fact that accused Nos.2 to 4 are in their seventies, also deserves to be taken

into account. Thus, the order of interim bail qua Accused No.2 to 4 deserves to be

confirmed.

45. Likewise, in the context of the material on record, and the nature of the

accusation against accused Nos.8 and 9, in my considered view, the order of interim

bail qua Accused Nos.8 and 9 also deserves to be made absolute.

46. Hence, the following order :

ORDER

(i) ABA No.867 of 2019 stands partly allowed.

The application of Vasudev Bhaskar Patil, Gurunath Sakharam Patil and Dilip Ramchandra Patil - Applicant Nos.2 to 4, stands allowed.

The order of interim bail dated 10 April 2019 is made absolute qua SSP 20/21 aba 865 of 2019.doc Applicant Nos.2 to 4.

The application of Mohan Madhukar Patil (A1) - Applicant No.1 stands rejected.

The order of interim bail dated 10 April 2019 stands vacated qua Mohan Patil (A1).

(ii) ABA No.865 of 2019 stands rejected.

The order of interim bail dated 10 April 2019 stands vacated.

(iii) ABA No.878 of 2019 stands allowed.

The order of interim bail dated 11 April 2019 is made absolute.

(iv) In view of the disposal of the applications, all Interim Applications stand disposed.

(v) By way of abundant caution, it is clarified that the observations made hereinabove are confined for the purpose of determination of the entitlement for bail and they may not be construed as an expression of opinion on the guilt or otherwise of the applicant and the trial Court shall not be influenced by any of the observations made hereinabove.

( N.J.JAMADAR, J. ) SSP 21/21 Signed by: S.S.Phadke Designation: PS To Honourable Judge Date: 24/02/2024 16:28:12

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