Jharkhand High Court
Sudha Kumari vs The State Of Jharkhand ..... Opposite ... on 21 August, 2024
Author: Rajesh Shankar
Bench: Rajesh Shankar
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JHARKHAND AT RANCHI
A. B. A. No. 4654 of 2024
1. Sudha Kumari
2. Sabila Khatoon ..... Petitioners
Versus
The State of Jharkhand ..... Opposite Party
-----
CORAM HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE RAJESH SHANKAR
-----
For the Petitioners: Mr. K. S. Nanda
For the State: Ms. Priya Shrestha, A.P.P
-----
04/21.08.2024 The petitioners apprehending their arrest in connection with the case
registered under Sections 420/467/468/471/409/120(B)/34 IPC have prayed for grant of anticipatory bail.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioners submits that the petitioners have been falsely implicated in this case and have not committed any offence as alleged in the F.I.R. As per the rule, the fund which has been transferred by the Government of India under NRLM to the Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society, is to be transferred to the DMMU and then the same is being given to the Cluster Level Federation as a capital to grant loan to different village organizations or Women Self Help Groups for enhancing their income and generating employment among themselves by doing business or other related activities.
3. It is further submitted that in the present case, the petitioner No.1 was concerned with Kurkura Cluster Level Committee, which had transferred a sum of Rs.50 Lac to Laxmi Producer Group for establishing a dairy farm and the same was sanctioned by the members of the said Committee in which the petitioner No.1 had no role to play as she was neither the sanctioning authority nor the recommending authority, rather she was the member/Secretary of Kurkura Cluster Level Federation to sanction or verify the needs. The petitioner No.1 was assigned the work to assist the self-help groups/Producer Committee of Kurkura Cluster Level Federation for enhancing their income as well as to assist them technically whereas the petitioner No.2 was concerned with Kamdara Cluster Level Committee, which 1 had transferred a sum of Rs.70 Lac to Laxmi Producer Group for establishing a dairy farm and the same was sanctioned by the members of the Committee in which the petitioner No.2 had got no role to play as she was neither the sanctioning authority nor the recommending authority, rather she was the member/Secretary of Kamdara Cluster Level Federation to sanction or verify the needs. The petitioner No.1 was assigned the work to assist the self-help groups/Producer Committee of Kurkura Cluster Level Federation for enhancing their income and assist them technically.
4. It is also submitted that Laxmi Produce Group made an application for grant of loan of Rs.50 Lac to Kurkura Cluster Level Federation and Rs.70 Lac to Kamdara Cluster Level Federation separately for establishing a dairy farm, which was verified by the members/Secretaries of Kamdara Cluster Level Committee and then the same was sanctioned and a sum of Rs.50 Lac was transferred on 22.02.2024 through a Cheque to Laxmi Producer Group and Rs.70 Lac was transferred by Kamdara Cluster Level Federation on 23.11.2023.
5. It is further submitted that though a sum of Rs.1,20,00,000/- was sanctioned, but not by one Cluster Level Federation, rather it was sanctioned by two Cluster Level Federations, namely, Kurkura Cluster Level Federation and Kamdara Cluster Level Federation and the petitioners had no role to play in sanctioning the said loan. Apart from that, IPRP had no role to play in disbursing the loan amount, rather it was done by the members of the Co-operative Society (Cluster Level Federation) working under the Jharkhand State Livelihood Promotion Society. The said amount has not been given as a grant, rather it has been transferred as loan and Laxmi Producer Group is repaying the amount as per the schedule.
6. Learned counsel for the petitioners also submits that the informant of the present case is herself is in the scanner and she was the signatory of the bank account of Laxmi Producer Group and was one of the members of the Cluster Level 2 Federation, which had sanctioned the loan and had given the same to Laxmi Producer Group as would be evident from the FIR.
7. It is further submitted that the petitioners were not authorized to transfer any amount nor were given any advice with respect to sanction of the fund to Laxmi Producer Group, rather they were responsible for giving technical assistance in livelihood activity to the members of different village organizations/SHG/producer group connected to Cluster Level Federation in managing the groups.
8. It is further submitted that the petitioners are the ladies and low ranking employees having no concern with the day-to-day affairs of the Cluster Level Federations, which had transferred the aforesaid amount to Laxmi Producer Group as loan. Thus, no offence under the alleged Sections of the IPC is made out against the petitioners.
9. It is also submitted that similarly situated co-accused Sushma Oraon has already been granted anticipatory bail by a coordinate Bench of this Court vide order dated 16.08.2024 passed in A.B.A No. 4504/2024. The petitioners have no criminal antecedent as has been stated in paragraph 21 of the present anticipatory bail application. They also undertake to cooperate in the ongoing investigation. Hence, they may be given the privilege of anticipatory bail.
10. Learned A.P.P opposes the petitioners' prayer for anticipatory bail.
11. Having heard learned counsel for the parties and considering the materials available on record as well as keeping in view that similarly situated co-accused Sushma Oraon has already been granted anticipatory bail by a coordinate Bench of this Court, I am inclined to enlarge the petitioners on anticipatory bail. Accordingly, the above named petitioners are directed to surrender before the concerned Court below within a period of three weeks. If they surrender before the Court below within the aforesaid period, they shall be released on bail on furnishing bail-bond of Rs.20,000/- (twenty thousand only) each with two sureties of the like amount 3 each to the satisfaction of the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Gumla in connection with Kamdara P.S. Case No. 25/2024, subject to the conditions as laid down under Section 482(2) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023.
Satish/- (RAJESH SHANKAR, J)
4