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Showing contexts for: section 354C IPC in Mukesh Giri vs State Of U.P.And 3 Others on 3 October, 2024Matching Fragments
11. It is further submitted by learned counsel for the applicant that once the offence under Section 354 IPC and Section 7/8 of POCSO Act is not made out against applicant, then Section 354C IPC being bailable in nature, applicant cannot be arrested for non-bailable offences under Section 354 IPC and Section 7/8 of POCSO Act. It is submitted that offence under Sections 504 & 506 IPC is also not made out against applicant.
12. Sri Sanjay Singh, learned A.G.A. has opposed the anticipatory bail application and submits that from the mobile phone and NVR recovered by the police, videos of females changing clothes were found and the same was sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory, where the same has been confirmed. He submits that offence in the present case is very serious in nature as the applicant is involved in recording of videos of females while changing clothes. It is further submitted by learned A.G.A. that applicant is having Rs. 1 lac bounty as the applicant has not cooperated in the investigation and till date he is evading the arrest.
23. It is not in dispute between the parties that the offence under Section 354C IPC is bailable as the applicant is the first offender in respect of the offence under Section 354C IPC. Section 354C IPC is quoted herein below:
"Any man who watches, or captures the image of a woman engaging in a private act in circumstances where she would usually have the expectation of not being observed either by the perpetrator or by any other person at the behest of the perpetrator or disseminates such image shall be punished on first conviction with imprisonment of either description for a term which shall not be less than one year, but which may extend to three years, and shall also be liable to fine, and be punished on a second or subsequent conviction, with imprisonment of either description for a term which shall not be less than three years, but which may extend to seven years, and shall also be liable to fine.
30. The offence under Section 354C IPC is a bailable offence as per admitted case of both the parties. Since Section 354C IPC is bailable offence, in the event of applicant being arrested, he is required to be released immediately on bail as a right. When offence is bailable, the accused has right under law to be enlarged on bail. Insofar as Section 506 IPC is concerned, the same pertains to offence of criminal intimidation. The criminal intimidation has been defined under Section 503 IPC, which is quoted herein below:
39. In view of the above mentioned discussions, the applicant is only liable to be prosecuted under Section 354C IPC, which is bailable in nature. Merely imposition of sections in investigation without the material being available violates the right of an individual under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.
40. It is settled principle of law that the object of bail is to secure the attendance of the accused. No material particulars or circumstances suggestive of the applicant fleeing from justice or thwarting the course of justice or creating other troubles in the shape of repeating offences or intimidating witnesses and the like have been shown by learned AGA for the State.