Bail After Discharge Judgment
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This case from the Lahore High Court concerns a bail application filed by Bakht Nawaz, who was accused in a robbery-murder case. According to the original police report (FIR), two unknown armed men on a motorbike tried to rob the complainant and his companions after they withdrew cash from a bank. When the deceased, Irshad Hussain, resisted the robbery attempt, he was shot and killed.
Bakht Nawaz was not named in the original FIR. He was implicated later, nearly nine months after the incident, when the complainant gave a supplementary statement accusing him of being a facilitator or abettor. After his arrest, police investigated and actually found him innocent, recommending his discharge from the case. However, the local magistrate disagreed and kept him in custody.
The High Court noted several weaknesses in the case against him: no identification parade was conducted, the FIR mentioned only two unknown attackers while the later application suddenly named five accused including Nawaz, and his alleged role was limited to conspiracy rather than the actual shooting. The court found the prosecution had not gathered sufficient evidence linking him to the crime and that his guilt required further investigation.
Based on this, the court granted him post-arrest bail, requiring bail bonds of Rs. 100,000. The judgment clarifies these findings are preliminary and won't affect the actual trial, illustrating how courts grant bail when evidence against an accused appears weak or incomplete at this stage.
لاہور ہائی کورٹ کا یہ مقدمہ بخت نواز کی ضمانت کی درخواست سے متعلق ہے، جسے ڈکیتی اور قتل کے ایک مقدمے میں ملزم بنایا گیا تھا۔ ابتدائی پولیس رپورٹ (ایف آئی آر) کے مطابق، موٹر سائیکل پر سوار دو نامعلوم مسلح افراد نے مدعی اور اس کے ساتھیوں کو، جب وہ بینک سے رقم نکلوا کر جا رہے تھے، لوٹنے کی کوشش کی۔ جب مقتول ارشاد حسین نے ڈکیتی کی مزاحمت کی تو اسے گولی مار کر قتل کر دیا گیا۔
بخت نواز کا نام اصل ایف آئی آر میں شامل نہیں تھا۔ اسے واقعے کے تقریباً نو ماہ بعد اس وقت ملوث کیا گیا جب مدعی نے ایک ضمنی بیان دے کر اس پر سہولت کاری یا اعانت کا الزام لگایا۔ گرفتاری کے بعد پولیس نے تحقیقات کیں اور دراصل اسے بے گناہ پایا، اور مقدمے سے اس کے اخراج کی سفارش کی۔ تاہم مقامی مجسٹریٹ نے اس سے اختلاف کیا اور اسے حراست میں رکھا۔
ہائی کورٹ نے اس کے خلاف مقدمے میں کئی کمزوریوں کی نشاندہی کی
Generated from the full judgment text below — not a substitute for reading the actual opinion.
PLJ 2015 Cr.C . (Lahore) 249 [Multan Bench Multan] Present: Shah Khawar , J. BAKHT NAWAZ --Petitioner versus STATE and anothers --Respondents Crl . Misc. No. 6291-B of 2014, decided on 14.1.2015. Criminal Procedure Code, 1898 (V of 1898)-- ----S. 497(2)--Pakistan Penal Code, (XLV of 1860), Ss. 302, 383 & 109--Bail, grant of--Further inquiry--Petitioner was not nominated in FIR and he was implicated in this case on supplementary statement got recorded by complainant--Complainant moved an application to police accusing present petitioner being facilitator/abettor of commission of offence--Petitioner was arrested and during course or investigation, police declared him as innocent and his discharge before Illaqa Magistrate who did not concur with findings of police--No identification parade test has been conducted as in FIR two unknown accused persons were to be culprits of commission of offence--Moreover, in application five accused persons including petitioner have been implicated whereas in FIR there was only mention of two unknown accused persons--Moreover, petitioner was culprit of offence of conspiracy and main role has been attributed to other co-accused persons--Prosecution could not collect any sufficient material to connect petitioner with commission of alleged offence--Petitioner was behind bars and was no more required to police for further investigation--Even otherwise, case of petitioner squarely falls within ambit of section 497(2), Cr.P.C . as guilt of petitioner in commission of alleged offence needs further probe-Bail was allowed. [P. 250] A Malik Saeed Ahmad Gumb , Advocate for Petitioner. Malik Bakht Yar Mehdi , Advocate for Complainant. Mr. Abdul Wadood Khan , DPG for Respondents. Date of hearing: 14.1.2015. Order Bakht Nawaz , petitioner seeks bail after arrest in case FIR No. 699 dated 04.12.2013 under Sections 302, 393 and 109 PPC registered at Police Station Saddar Jalalpur , Pirwala .
2. Precisely, the prosecution story as mentioned in the FIR is that on 04.12.2013 at about 04:45 p.m. while complainant alongwith with PWs by boarding on a car were proceeding towards Hafiz Wala after getting cash from MCB Bank Jalalpur Pirwala near Adda Qureshian , two unknown persons while riding on motorbike were chasing them and on gun point tried to stop their car. While confronting such situation, Ameer Bakhsh PW by taking the cash started running towards fields and when the accused tried to snatch cash from him, Irshad Hussain (deceased) resisted them, upon which aid accused persons made straight fire with their weapons on the person of Irshad Hussain (deceased) which hit him on his different parts of body who succumbed to the injuries at the spot.
3. Heard. The petitioner is not nominated in the FIR and he was implicated in this case on the supplementary statement got recorded by the complainant. On 08.09.2014, the complainant moved an application to the police accusing present petitioner being the facilitator/ abettor of commission of offence. Petitioner was arrested on 03.10.2014 and during course of investigation, the police declared him as innocent and moved for his discharge before the learned Illaqa Magistrate who did not concur with the findings of the police. No identification parade test has been conducted as in the FIR two unknown accused persons were to be the culprits of commission of offence. Moreover, in application dated 08.09.2014, five accused persons including the petitioner have been implicated whereas in the FIR there is only mention of two unknown accused persons. Moreover, the petitioner is culprit of offence of conspiracy and main role has been attributed to other co-accused persons. The prosecution could not collect any sufficient material to connect the petitioner with the commission of alleged offence. Petitioner is behind the bars and is no more required to the police for further investigation. Even otherwise, the case of the petitioner squarely falls within the ambit of section 497(2), Cr.P.C . as guilt of petitioner in the commission of alleged offence needs further probe.
5. For what has been discussed above, this petition is allowed and petitioner is admitted to post arrest bail subject to his furnishing bail bond in the sum of Rs.1,00,000/- (rupees one lakh only) with one surety in the like amount to the satisfaction of learned trial Court.
6. However, it is made clear that the above findings are tentative in nature and shall have no bearing on the trial of the case. (A.S.) Bail allowed