Page No.# 1/4 GAHC010264382024 2025:GAU-AS:2876 THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : AB/3258/2024 SRI PARTHA DAS S/O SRI JIBAN DAS PERMANENT RESIDENT OF BAMBORAH GAON, UNDER GOLAGHAT POLICE STATION IN THE DISTRICT OF GOLAGHAT, ASSAM VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM AND ANR REPRESENTED BY THE PP, ASSAM 2:XXX D/O SRI BIJI BORA PERMANENT RESIDENT OF BAMBORAHI GAON UNDER GOLAGHAT POLICE STATION IN THE DISTRICT OF GOLAGHAT ASSAM (VICTIM/INFORMANT Advocate for the Petitioner : MR. B M CHOUDHURY, MR. U CHOUDHURY Advocate for the Respondent : PP, ASSAM, MS M DAS (LEGAL AID COUNSEL FOR R-2) BEFORE HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE MANASH RANJAN PATHAK 18/03/2025 Heard Mr. B M Choudhury, learned counsel for the petitioner and Mr. K K Parashar, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, Assam for the State respondent No. 1. Also heard Ms. Mamoni Das, learned Legal Aid counsel appearing for the informant/opposite party No. 2. Page No.# 2/4 2. The petitioner, namely, Sri Partha Das, son of Sri Jiban Das, resident of Bamborahi Gaon, P.S. Golaghat, District-Golaghat, has filed this application on 09.12.2024 under Section 482 BNSS, 2023, seeking pre-arrest bail apprehending his arrest in Golaghat Police Station Case No. 196/2024 registered under Sections 115(2)/351(2)/3(5) of BNS, 2023 read with Section 6 of the POCSO Act, 2012 corresponding to G.R. No. 536/2024. 3. As per the FIR dated 03.10.2024 lodged by the victim girl before the Officer-in-Charge of Furkating Police Outpost under Golaghat Police Station, the case is that she was having a love affair with the accused petitioner since 2023, who was a resident of the same village and promising her to marry induced her and had sexual relation with her. On 28.09.2024, the accused petitioner called her to his house wherein he along with his aunt, Bakhonti Das and cousin brother, Simanta Das assaulted her, forcefully pour medicines in her mouth and tried to kill her. Somehow she managed to flee away from the house of the accused petitioner and save her life. In the FIR dated 03.10.2024, the victim girl also alleged that in the said incident another girl, namely, Pahi Dutta is also involved with whom the accused petitioner had love affair earlier. By the said FIR, the victim girl urged before the Officer- in-Charge of Furkating Police Station to do the needful and to give necessary punishment to the accused petitioner. The said FIR of the victim girl was initially entered as Furkating Outpost G.D. Entry No. 34/24 dated 03.10.2024 and was forwarded to the Golaghat Police Station, wherein it was registered as Golaghat P.S. Case No. 196/2024 under Sections 115(2)/351(2)/3(5) of BNS, 2023 read with Section 6 of the POCSO Act. 4. Mr. Choudhury, learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that from the reading of the FIR, it can be presumed that it is not a case of Section 6 of the POCSO Act of having penetrative sexual assault as there was no such claim for aggravated penetrative sexual assault in the FIR lodged by the victim girl, at best, it can be a case of Section 8 of the POCSO Act. 5. Perused the case diary placed before the Court today by Mr. Parashar, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, Assam. 6. Mr. Parashar, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, Assam from the case diary submitted that the birth certificate of the victim girl has already been seized and her statement under Section 183 BNSS has also been recorded. 7. From the birth certificate of the victim girl issued by the Registrar of Births & Deaths, Kamarbandha Public Health Center, Golaghat dated 05.02.2021, Mr. Parashar, learned Additional Public Page No.# 3/4 Prosecutor, Assam submitted that her date of birth is 29.06.2006. As such, on the date of the incident, i.e., on 28.09.2024, the victim girl was about 18 years 2 months. However, as per her allegation of committing sexual relation with her since 2023, the victim girl was a minor. 8. Mr. Parashar, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, Assam also submitted that in her Section 183 BNSS statement, the victim girl has implicated the petitioner of committing the alleged crime. 9. Ms. M Das, learned Legal Aid counsel appearing for the informant/victim girl submitted that the Court may consider the materials available in the case diary and accordingly, do the needful. 10. From the case diary, it is seen that the statement of the victim girl under Section 183 BNSS was recorded on 03.10.2024 by the learned Sub-Divisional Judicial Magistrate (Sadar), Golaghat in which the victim girl stated that she was having a love affair with the accused petitioner since 2023 and that he promised that after 3 years, he will marry her and was having physical relation with him since then. She narrated the incident that occurred on 28.09.2024 in the house of the accused petitioner. 11. Also perused the medical report of the victim girl examined on 03.10.2024 at Swahid Kushal Konwar Civil Hospital at Golaghat. 12. It is seen that the concerned Investigating Officer has already recorded Section 180 BNSS of the victim girl, her parents as well as that of the FIR named aunt and cousin brother of the accused petitioner, but could not trace the alleged former girlfriend of the accused petitioner, Pahi Dutta, as no one could provide her address including the victim girl. 13. Considering the materials in the case diary, the statement of the victim girl as well as her medical report dated 03.10.2024, the Court is of the view that custodial detention of the petitioner, named above, is not warranted to investigate the said Golaghat P.S. Case No. 196/2024. As such, this pre-arrest bail application of the petitioner is accepted. 14. Accordingly, in the event of arrest of the petitioner, namely, Sri Partha Das, son of Sri Jiban Das, in said Golaghat P.S. Case No. 196/2024 registered under Sections 115(2)/351(2)/3(5) of BNS, 2023 read with Section 6 of the POCSO Act, 2012 corresponding to G.R. No. 536/2024, he shall be released on bail on furnishing a bail bond of Rs.50,000/- with 2 (two) local sureties each of the like amount to the satisfaction of the arresting authority, subject to the conditions that the petitioner - (i) shall appear before the concerned Investigating Officer of Golaghat P.S. Case No. 196/2024 on or Page No.# 4/4 before 24.03.2025 and thereafter, as and when he is required for necessary investigation of the case; (ii) shall not leave the territorial jurisdiction of said Golaghat Police Station, without obtaining prior written permission from the concerned I/O of the case; (iii) shall not hamper with the investigation, or tamper with the evidence of the case; (iv) 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 them from disclosing such facts to the Court or to any police officer and further (v) shall not harm/threat the victim girl, her parents or anyone of her family members by him or by anyone acting on his behalf, in any manner and shall never come to the vicinity of the victim girl or anyone of her family. 15. Violation of any of the aforesaid terms and conditions by the petitioner, Sri Partha Das, the pre-arrest bail granted to him in said Golaghat P.S. Case No. 196/2024 shall stand automatically vacated. 16. Accordingly, this pre-arrest bail application stands allowed to the extent above. 17. Return the case diary. 18. The Gauhati High Court Legal Services Authority shall pay the remuneration to Ms. Mamoni Das, learned Legal Aid counsel, on raising a bill, who appeared for the informant/opposite party No.2, as being appointed by the Court and assisted the Court in adjudicating this matter. JUDGE Comparing Assistant