Bail Application – Repeated Petition – No Substantial Change in Circumstances – The petitioner, facing charges under multiple sections of the BNS, filed a third bail application under Section 483 of BNSS—Previous bail applications had been dismissed—Petitioner failed to demonstrate any substantive change in circumstances—Held: Once a bail application has been re...
Criminal Law - Corruption Law – Appeal against conviction – Acquittal - Demand and Acceptance – Proof of Guilt – Essential Requirements – The appellant challenged his conviction under Sections 7 and 13(2) read with Section 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, contending absence of credible evidence to prove demand and acceptance of bribe – Held: P...
Criminal Law – Quashing - Dishonour of Cheque – Liability of Joint Account Holder – Only Drawer Can Be Prosecuted – In a case involving a dishonoured cheque issued from a joint account, liability under Section 138 of the NI Act is attracted only against the person who signed the cheque – The petitioner, though a joint account holder, did not sign the cheque in questio...
Criminal Law - Abetment of Rape – Essential Ingredients Not Satisfied – Conviction Set Aside – The appellant was convicted under Section 114 read with Section 376 IPC on the allegation that she harbored the prime accused (her husband) and the victim (a minor) in her house and prevented the victim from leaving – Held: For abetment under Section 107 IPC, it must be shown that...
Criminal Law - Magistrate’s Power – Scope of Section 156(3) of Cr.P.C. & 175 BNSS – Duty to Apply Judicial Mind – The Magistrate passed an order under Section 156(3) of Cr.P.C. directing police to register an FIR and investigate without properly analyzing whether the complaint disclosed cognizable offences – Held: A Magistrate is required to apply his mind to dete...
Bail in Money Laundering Cases – Applicability of Section 45 of PMLA – The applicant was arrested for allegedly laundering ₹1.35 Crores from proceeds of crime linked to a COVID-19 food supply contract – Held: While Section 45 of PMLA imposes strict conditions for bail, prolonged incarceration without trial violates the right to personal liberty under Article 21 of the Constitut...
Criminal Procedure – Quashing of Criminal Proceedings – Scope of Section 482 Cr.P.C. – The petitioners, a bishop and a priest of the Jacobite faction, sought quashing of proceedings in C.C. No. 99/2014 alleging unlawful entry into St. Ignatius Church, Kanjiramattom, in violation of court and administrative orders – The petitioners contended false implication and non-applica...
Criminal Law – Murder vs. Culpable Homicide – Absence of Premeditation – Conviction Modified – The Appellants were convicted under Section 302 read with Section 34 IPC for the murder of Manoj Dixit based on circumstantial evidence, including last seen theory, forensic analysis, and recovery of incriminating evidence – The Appellate Court found that the incident occurr...
Bail under NDPS Act – Compliance with Section 37 – Twin Conditions to Be Met – The petitioner sought bail in an NDPS Act case involving commercial quantity – Held: Under Section 37 of the NDPS Act, two conditions must be satisfied before granting bail – (i) The Court must hear the Public Prosecutor, and (ii) There must be reasonable grounds to believe that the accused...
Criminal Law – Conviction for Murder and Robbery – Appeal by first accused against conviction under Sections 302 and 392 IPC – Evidence based on circumstantial facts – High Court assessed the sufficiency of circumstantial evidence – Appellant’s possession of victim’s stolen ornaments considered under Section 114 of the Indian Evidence Act – Prosecuti...