Neutral Citation No. - 2025:AHC-LKO:20846 Court No. - 15 Case :- CRIMINAL MISC. BAIL APPLICATION No. - 12184 of 2024 Applicant :- Brind Yadav @ Virendra Yadav Opposite Party :- State Of U.P. Thru. Prin. Secy. Home Deptt. Lko. And 3 Others Counsel for Applicant :- Amit Kumar Awasthi,Dharm Trivedi,Ram Kripal Mishra Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A. Hon'ble Subhash Vidyarthi,J. 1. Heard Sri Dharm Trivedi, learned counsel for the applicant, Sri Alok Kumar Tiwari, learned Additional Government Advocate for the State and perused the records. 2. The instant application has been filed seeking release of the applicant on bail in Case Crime No.0525 of 2024, under Section 65(1) B.N.S., Section 3/4(2) Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 and Section 3(2)5 SC/ST Act, registered at Police Station Mohammadi, District Kheri. 3. The aforesaid case has been registered on the basis of an F.I.R. lodged on 19.08.2024, stating that when the informant's daughter aged 11 years had gone to attend the call of nature outside the village at about 3 p.m. on 18.08.2024 along with her cousin, the applicant dragged the informant's daughter inside the sugarcane field and raped her. In the statement of the informant as well as in the statement of the victim recorded under Section 180 B.N.S.S., they reiterated the FIR version. 4. The medico-legal examination of the victim was conducted on 19.08.2024 at 2.15 p.m. In the statement given to the doctor, who conducted her examination, she reiterated her earlier version. The pathological examination report mentions that hymen was fresh torn, bleeding was present. The doctor found that there were signs of use of force. 5. In the radiological examination, the age of the victim was opined to be between 14-16 years. As per the educational document, the date of birth of the victim is 28.03.2012. 6. In the statement of the victim recorded under Section 183 B.N.S.S., she categorically stated that the applicant had raped her. 7. In the affidavit filed in support of bail application, it has been stated that the applicant is innocent, he has been falsely implicated in the present case and he has no criminal history. 8. The State has filed a counter affidavit annexing therewith copies of the material collected during investigation and a copy of the charge-sheet submitted on 14.09.2021. 9. A supplementary affidavit has been filed on behalf of the applicant annexing therewith copies of the statements of the informant and the victim recorded by the trial Court. The victim has been examined as PW-1. She did not support her earlier version in her examination-in-chief. She was declared hostile. The Court granted permission to the public prosecutor to cross- examine the victim. During cross-examination, she stated that the applicant had raped her. 10.The informant has been examined as PW-2. In her examination in chief, she supported the FIR version but in her cross- examination, she changed her stand. 11.Learned counsel for the applicant has submitted that as the informant and the victim have turned hostile, the applicant is entitled to be released on bail. 12.In Ramesh v. State of Haryana: (2017) 1 SCC 529, the Hon'ble Supreme Court expressed its concern about the culture of the witnesses turning hostile, in the following words: - “39. We find that it is becoming a common phenomenon, almost a regular feature, that in criminal cases witnesses turn hostile. There could be various reasons for this behaviour or attitude of the witnesses. It is possible that when the statements of such witnesses were recorded under Section 161 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 by the police during investigation, the investigating officer forced them to make such statements and, therefore, they resiled therefrom while deposing in the court and justifiably so. However, this is no longer the reason in most of the cases. This trend of witnesses turning hostile is due to various other factors. It may be fear of deposing against the accused/delinquent or political pressure or pressure of other family members or other such sociological factors. It is also possible that witnesses are corrupted with monetary considerations. * * * 44. On the analysis of various cases, the following reasons can be discerned which make witnesses retracting their statements before the court and turning hostile: (i) Threat/Intimidation. (ii) Inducement by various means. (iii) Use of muscle and money power by the accused. (iv) Use of stock witnesses. (v) Protracted trials. (vi) Hassles faced by the witnesses during investigation and trial. (vii) Non-existence of any clear-cut legislation to check hostility of witness. 45. Threat and intimidation has been one of the major causes for the hostility of witnesses. Bentham said:“witnesses are the eyes and ears of justice”. When the witnesses are not able to depose correctly in the court of law, it results in low rate of conviction and many times even hardened criminals escape the conviction. It shakes public confidence in the criminal justice delivery system. It is for this reason there has been a lot of discussion on witness protection and from various quarters demand is made for the State to play a definite role in coming out with witness protection programme, at least in sensitive cases involving those in power, who have political patronage and could wield muscle and money power, to avert trial getting tainted and derailed and truth becoming a casualty. A stern and emphatic message to this effect was given in Zahira Habibullah Sheikh (5) v. State of Gujarat, (2006) 3 SCC 374 as well.” 13.Having considered the initial statements of the victim, which are supported by the findings of the medico-legal examination report of the victim, I am of the considered view that even though the minor victim has turned hostile, the findings of the medico-legal examination do not warrant exercise of discretion by this Court for enlarging the applicant on bail. 14.The bail application of the applicant is, accordingly, rejected. . (Subhash Vidyarthi, J.) Order Date: 11.04.2025 MVS/- Digitally signed by :- MANOJ VIKRAM SINGH CHAUHAN High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, Lucknow Bench