Neutral Citation No. - 2025:AHC:63628 Court No. - 65 Case :- CRIMINAL MISC. BAIL APPLICATION No. - 12421 of 2025 Applicant :- Mangal Alias Saroj Kumar Opposite Party :- State Of U.P. And 3 Others Counsel for Applicant :- Mandeep Chaudhary,Navneet Kumar Singh,Rahul Yadav,Vinod Kumar Counsel for Opposite Party :- G.A. Hon'ble Krishan Pahal,J. 1. List has been revised. As informed by learned AGA, notice to the informant has been served on 15.04.2025 but none is present on behalf of the informant. 2. Heard Sri Mandeep Chaudhary, learned counsel for the applicant and Sri Arun Kumar Mishra, learned A.G.A. for the State and also perused the material placed on record. 3. Applicant seeks bail in Case Crime No. 222 of 2024, under Section 65(1) of BNS and Sections 5L/6 of POCSO Act, Police Station - Chakia, District - Chandauli, during the pendency of trial. 4. As per prosecution story, the applicant is stated to have outraged the modesty of the minor daughter of the informant on 30.11.2024 at about 03:00 PM. The FIR indicates that the victim was not mentally stable. 5. Learned counsel for the applicant has argued that the applicant is absolutely innocent and has been falsely implicated in the present case. He has nothing to do with the said offence as alleged in the FIR. The allegations are per se false. The FIR itself is delayed by about four days and there is no explanation of the said delay caused. The FIR indicates that the applicant had outraged the modesty of the victim only and the same allegation has been reiterated in her statement recorded u/s 180 BNSS but the allegations have been escalated to rape in her statement recorded u/s 183 BNSS. 6. Learned counsel has also stated that the victim is not mentally ill as is evident from her statement recorded u/s 183 BNSS whereby she has stated that she suffered from Epileptic fits. The Epilepsy do not fall in the category of mental disorder or disability. The victim by her looks seems to be major, although as per her school certificate of class VIII, her age has come out to be 15 years 6 months and 15 days as her date of birth is 15.05.2009. The said certificate is not admissible in light of Section 94 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection) Act. 7. Learned counsel has next stated that there is no medical corroboration of the incident. There is no criminal history of the applicant. The applicant is languishing in jail since 07.12.2024 and he is ready to cooperate with trial. In case, the applicant is released on bail, he will not misuse the liberty of bail. 8. Per contra, learned AGA has vehemently opposed the bail application but unable to dispute the submissions raised by the learned counsel for the applicant and also the fact that the applicant has no criminal history. 9. The alleged school certificate of the victim cannot be taken into consideration in view of the judgement of Supreme Court passed in P. Yuvaprakash vs State Rep. by Inspector of Police, AIR 2023 SC 3525, whereby it has observed that in the absence of records relating to the birth of the victim, no other documents except the Matriculation or equivalent certificate from the concerned examination board or certificate by a corporation, municipal authority or a Panchayat can be relied upon to ascertain the age of the victim. 10. Considering the facts and circumstances of the case, submissions made by learned counsel for the parties, the evidence on record, and taking into consideration the settled law of the Supreme Court passed in Satender Kumar Antil vs. Central Bureau of Investigation and Ors., 2022 INSC 690 and Manish Sisodia vs. Directorate of Enforcement, 2024 INSC 595 and also the fact of delay in lodging the FIR, allegations have been escalated in her statements, no medical corroboration of the incident, I find it a fit case to release the applicant on bail. The bail application is allowed. 11. Let the applicant- Mangal Alias Saroj Kumar, who is involved in aforementioned case crime be released on bail on his furnishing a personal bond and two sureties each in the like amount to the satisfaction of the court concerned subject to following conditions. Further, before issuing the release order, the sureties be verified. i) The applicant will not tamper with the evidence during trial. ii) The applicant will not pressurise/intimidate with the prosecution witnesses. iii) The applicant will appear before the trial court on the date fixed. 12. In case of breach of any of the above conditions, it shall be a ground for cancellation of bail. 13. It is made clear that observations made in granting bail to the applicant shall not in any way affect the learned trial Judge in forming his independent opinion based on the testimony of the witnesses. Order Date:- 25.4.2025 Siddhant (Justice Krishan Pahal) Digitally signed by :- SIDDHANT SAHU High Court of Judicature at Allahabad Digitally signed by :- SIDDHANT SAHU High Court of Judicature at Allahabad