Page No.# 1/5 GAHC010150992025 2025:GAU-AS:9955 THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : Bail Appln./2230/2025 BIJU DAS ALIAS BABU AND 2 ORS. SON OF LATE BIREN DAS R/O BAMUNIMAIDAM RAILWAY COLONY BAZAR NEAR SANI MANDIR 2: RINKU DAS SON OF RANA DAS R/O BAMUNIMAIDAM RAILWAY COLONY BAZAR NEAR SANI MANDIR P.S. CHANDMARI DIST. KAMRUP (M) ASSAM 3: TULTUL DEKA SON OF LATE SADANANDA DEKA R/O AMIYANAGAR P.S. CHANDMARI DIST. KAMRUP (M) ASSA VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM REPRESENTED BY THE PP, ASSAM Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. C K NATH, MR. AJAY SARMA,MR. S MUNIR Advocate for the Respondent : PP, ASSAM, Page No.# 2/5 BEFORE HONOURABLE MRS. JUSTICE MITALI THAKURIA ORDER Date : 01.08.2025 Heard Mr. S. Munir, learned counsel for the petitioners. Also heard Mr. P. Borthakur, learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the State respondent. 2. This is an application under Section 483 of BNSS, 2023, praying for grant of bail to the accused/petitioners, who have been arrested in connection with Chandmari P.S. Case No. 175/2025, under Sections 319(2)/308(5)/351(3)/296/3(5) of the BNS, 2023. 3. Case Diary has been received and I have perused the same. 4. It is submitted by Mr. Munir, learned counsel for the petitioners, that the present accused/petitioners, along with their other associates, by forming a committee, had admittedly collected tax from the small vendors/traders only for the development of the market and without any sort of complaint from any corner, the said committee was running the business for last 9 (nine) years, which even reveals from the statement made in the F.I.R. However, with mala fide intention and only to harass the present petitioners and also with intent to constitute a new committee, the F.I.R. has been lodged with some concocted allegation. After filling of the F.I.R., immediately the new committee has been constituted and presently the newly constituted committee is running the market. He further submitted that present accused/petitioners are in custody for Page No.# 3/5 last 25 (twenty five) days and thus, the I.O. got sufficient opportunity to interrogate the present accused/petitioners keeping them in custody. However, they are ready and willing to extend their co-operation with the I.O. in further investigation of this case if they are granted with the privilege of bail. 5. Mr. Borthakur, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, submitted in this regard that the present accused/petitioners are the main accused of the case, especially the petitioner No. 1- Biju Das @ Babu is the prime accused under whose instructions the other accused persons were illegally collecting taxes from the vendors of said the market area without having any authorization from the authority concerned. He further submitted that the present accused/petitioners, along with other associates, used to demand Rs. 500 to Rs. 700 per day illegally from the vendors in the name of running the market. Accordingly, Mr. Borthakur raised objection and submitted that the bail prayer of the present petitioner may not be considered at this stage. 6. In this context, Mr. Munir, learned counsel for the petitioners, submitted that admittedly the petitioners were engaged in collecting the taxes from the vendors and there was an exorbitant demand to some extent, but the false allegation of threatening is brought against the present accused/petitioners. He further reiterated that till date, there was no complaint from any corner and the petitioners were running the market area for last 9 (nine) years, which is even admitted in the F.I.R. by the informant. 7. After hearing the submissions made by the learned counsel for both sides and also on perusal of the case record and the Case Diary, it is seen that the Page No.# 4/5 present accused/petitioners are also associated with the other co-accused persons and they used to make some illegal demand from the vendors. In the same time, it also cannot be denied that prior to lodging of the F.I.R., the present petitioner, along with other associates, were running the business of collecting taxes from the vendors in the said market area for last 9 (nine) years without any complaint from any corner. 8. In view of the above aspects of the case and also considering the length of detention already undergone by the present accused/petitioners, I am of the view that further custodial detention of the present accused/petitioners may not be necessary for the purpose of investigation and therefore, I find it a fit case to extend the privilege of bail to the present accused/petitioners. 9. Accordingly, it is provided that on furnishing a bond of Rs. 20,000/- (Rupees twenty thousand) only each with one surety of like amount to the satisfaction of the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kamrup(M), Guwahati, the accused/petitioners, namely, (i) Biju Das @ Babu, (ii) Rinku Das, & (iii) Tultul Deka, be enlarged on bail, subject to the following conditions: (i) that the petitioners shall make themselves available for interrogation by the Investigating Officer as and when required; (ii) that the petitioners shall not, directly or indirectly, make any inducement, threat or promise to any person acquainted with the facts of the case so as to dissuade him from disclosing such facts to Page No.# 5/5 the Court or to any police officer; and (iii) that the petitioners shall not leave the jurisdiction of the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kamrup(M), Guwahati, without prior permission. 10. In terms of above, this bail application stands disposed of. 11. Case Diary be returned. JUDGE Comparing Assistant