Page No.# 1/5 GAHC010276722024 2025:GAU-AS:352 THE GAUHATI HIGH COURT (HIGH COURT OF ASSAM, NAGALAND, MIZORAM AND ARUNACHAL PRADESH) Case No. : Bail Appln./3941/2024 SUNNY CHAKRABORTY AND 5 ORS S/O SAJUL CHAKRABORTY, RESIDENT OF FATASIL AMBARI, KK PATH, NEAR KALI MANDIR, PS FATASIL AMBARI, GUWAHATI DIST KAMRUP M ASSAM 2: CHANDRA GAYARI S/O DHANTI RAM GAYARI RESIDENT OF KOKRAJHAR KACHUGAON PS GOSAIGAON DIST KOKRAJHAR ASSAM 3: CHANDAN DUTTA S/O SUNIL DUTTA RESIDENT OF NAGOAN AMONI PS SAMAGURI DIST NAGAON ASSAM 4: UTTAM DUTTA S/O NABA DUTTA RESIDENT OF FATASIL AMBARI KK PATH NEAR KALI MANDIR PS FATASIL AMBARI GUWAHATI DIST KAMRUP M ASSAM 5: JITEN DAS S/O SUBIR CHANDRA DAS Page No.# 2/5 RESIDENT OF FATASIL AMBARI KK PATH NEAR KALI MANDIR PS FATASIL AMBARI GUWAHATI DIST KAMRUP M ASSAM 6: RAJEN BORO S/O JUDDHA BORO RESIDENT OF JABARKUCHI PS SARTHEBARI DIST BARPETA ASSA VERSUS THE STATE OF ASSAM REP BY THE PP, ASSAM Advocate for the Petitioner : DR. D J DEKA, Advocate for the Respondent : PP, ASSAM, BEFORE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE MANASH RANJAN PATHAK ORDER 09.01.2025 Heard Dr. D J Deka, learned counsel for the petitioners and Mr. B Sarma, learned Additional Public Prosecutor, Assam for the State. 2. The petitioners, namely, (i) Sunny Chakraborty, son of Sajul Chakraborty, resident of Fatasil Ambari, P.S.-Fatasil, District-Kamrup(M), (ii) Chandra Gayari, son of Danti Ram Gayari, resident of village-Kachugaon, P.S.-Gossaigaon, District-Kokrajhar, (iii) Chandan Dutta, son of Sunil Dutta, resident of Nagaon Amoni, P.S.-Samaguri, District-Nagaon, (iv) Uttam Dutta, son of Naba Dutta, resident of Fatasil Ambari, P.S.-Fatasil, District-Kamrup(M), (v) Jiten Das, son of Subir Chandra Das, resident of Fatasil Ambari, P.S.-Fatasil, District-Kamrup(M) and (vi) Rajen Boro, son of Juddha Boro, resident of Village-Jabarkuchi, Police Station-Sarthebari, District- Page No.# 3/5 Barpeta have filed this application under Section 483 BNSS, 2023 praying for their release on bail in Chandmari Police Station Case No. 282/2024 registered under Sections 303(2)/112(2)/3(5) BNS, 2023, read with added Sections 317(2)/238(C) BNS, 2023 corresponding to G.R. No. 6828/2024, in which they were arrested on 18.11.2024 and are in custody since then. 3. It is submitted on behalf of the petitioners that they are no way connected with the case and have been falsely implicated in it. It is stated that the petitioners are labourers and daily wage earners who have no knowledge about the said incident. They went to the place of occurrence as per the direction of another man. 4. The petitioners stated that they are innocent and that they did not have any criminal record in the past and that they are the sole earning members of their respective families having their wives and minor children. It is submitted that the petitioners shall co-operate with the investigation of the case and that they will abide by any terms and conditions that may be imposed upon them by the Court while considering their case for releasing them on bail. 5. Mr. B Sarma, learned Additional Public Prosecutor for the State submitted that the accused persons involved in the case have been charged with the theft of manhole covers, a crime that directly endangers public safety by leaving those manholes open, risking severe accidents or fatalities. Such crime also disrupts essential public infrastructure, demonstrating its anti-social nature and the significant harm caused to the public. 6. With regard to the petitioners, Mr. Sarma, learned Addl. Public Prosecutor from the Case diary submitted that considering the gravity of the offences, bail should not be granted to the petitioners as investigation is going on and if granted, it would undermine the public confidence in the justice system. Therefore, Mr. Sarma prayed for rejection of the bail of the petitioners considering their involvement in the case on the basis of the materials available in the case diary. 7. As per the FIR dated 18.11.2024, the case is that over the past few days a series of thefts involving manhole covers in the Bamunimaidan area were noticed. It was reported that a group of miscreants had been stealing the manhole covers using small commercial vehicle to transport them and selling those outside Guwahati. The accused persons have allegedly been engaging in such activities for extended period. After receiving such reports, the matter was informed to the Officer-in-charge of Chandmari Police Station who in turn notified the matter to the senior Police Page No.# 4/5 Officials as per the procedure. Accordingly, a team was subsequently formed consisting of police personnel from Chandmari Police Station to investigate the matter. For the last few days patrolling was intensified in Chandmari area. On 18.11.2024 in the morning hours around 06:00 am, based on credible suspicion, the said police team successfully apprehended the gang members, five stolen numbers of manhole covers were recovered along with a four-wheeler commercial vehicle (Tata Yodha) bearing Registration No. AS-01-QC-0265. Exploiting the ongoing drainage repair and the cleaning work, during which manhole covers were left beside the footpaths, the accused persons posed as Guwahati Municipal workers to avoid suspicion and had stolen those manhole covers, during which six of the accused persons were apprehended who loaded the stolen manhole covers into the vehicle and attempted to flee. During the preliminary enquiry it was revealed that the vehicle belongs to one Chinmoy Chakraborty and was also discovered that the apprehended accused persons had been selling the stolen manhole covers to scrap yards in Rangia and furthermore, a middleman posing as a GMC official was found assisting the apprehended accused persons in executing the theft of manhole covers and that the stolen articles have been duly seized preparing the seizure memo and the accused persons were duly apprehended by police personnel. As such the complainant lodged the FIR before the Officer-in- Charge of Chandmari Police Station requesting the said authority to initiate legal action against the apprehended individuals, the alleged GMC official, the scrap yard owners involved in the case who received the stolen goods and to register a case under the appropriate sections of law and for necessary investigation of the case. Accordingly, Chandmari Police Station Case No. 282/2024 under Sections 303(2)/112(2)/3(5) BNS, 2023, read with added Sections 317(2)/238(C) BNS, 2023 was registered. 8. Perused the case diary placed by Mr. B Sarma, learned Addl. P.P., Assam. 9. On perusal of the case diary and considering the detention of the petitioners since 18.11.2024, this Court is of the opinion that their further custodial detention is not warranted for investigation of said Chandmari Police Station Case No. 282/2024. As such, this bail application of the petitioners, named above, in said Chandmari P.S. case is accepted. 10. Accordingly, the petitioners, namely, i) Sunny Chakraborty, (ii) Chandra Gayari, (iii) Chandan Dutta, (iv) Uttam Dutta, (v) Jiten Das and (vi) Rajen Boro, be released on bail in said Chandmari P.S. Case No. 282/2024 on furnishing bail bond of Rs. 50,000/- each, with 2(two) local sureties, each of the like amount, one of which shall be a government employee, Page No.# 5/5 either Central or State Government, to the satisfaction of the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kamrup (Metro), subject to the conditions that the petitioners, named above — i) shall appear before the concerned Investigating Officer of said Chandmari P.S. Case No. 282/2024 on every Monday commencing from 27.01.2025 for the next two English Calendar Months or filing of charge-sheet in the case, whichever is earlier and further, as and when they are required for necessary investigation of the case; ii) shall not leave the territorial jurisdiction of Chandmari Police Station without obtaining prior written permission from the Investigating Officer of said Chandmari P.S. 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; v) shall not involve themselves in any criminal activities in the future. 11. Any violation of the aforesaid terms and conditions by any of the petitioners, namely, i) Sunny Chakraborty, (ii) Chandra Gayari, (iii) Chandan Dutta, (iv) Uttam Dutta, (v) Jiten Das and (vi) Rajen Boro, the bail granted to them in said Chandmari P.S. Case No. 282/2024 shall stand automatically vacated. 12. This bail application accordingly stands allowed. 13. Return the case diary herewith. JUDGE Comparing Assistant