1 2025:CGHC:42429 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MCRCA No. 1269 of 2025 Pawan Agrawal S/o Satyanarayan Agrawal Aged About 49 Years R/o Ward No. 40, Paadimar, P.S. Balco, Dist- Korba (C.G.) ... Applicant versus 1 - State Of Chhattisgarh Through- S.H.O., P.S. Balco, Dist- Korba (C.G.) 2 - Naveen Goyal S/o Late Shri Satyanarayan Goyal Aged About 45 Years R/o Shop No. 09, Civil Center, Balco Nagar, P.S. Balco Nagar, Tah. And Dist- Korba (C.G.) ... Respondents For Applicant : Shri Ravindra Sharma, Advocate. For Respondent/State : Shri Atanu Ghosh, Dy.G.A. For objector : Shri Gaurav Singhal, Advocate. Hon'ble Shri Ramesh Sinha, Chief Justice Order On Board 21/08/2025 1. The applicant has preferred this application under Section 482 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (for short ‘BNSS’), for grant of anticipatory bail, apprehending his arrest in connection with Crime No.300/2025, registered at Police Station Balco, Dist- Korba (C.G.) for GOURI MUDALIAR Digitally signed by GOURI MUDALIAR Date: 2025.08.25 18:20:43 +0530 2 alleged commission of offence punishable under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 120-B, 34 of I.P.C. 2. As per prosecution story, the non-applicant No.2/complainant filed the complaint case U/s 175 (3) of Bhartiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita which was allowed vide order dated 02.05.2025 passed by learned Judicial Magistrate First Class Korba (C.G.), wherein it was directed to register the F.I.R. against the applicant and other co-accused. The non - applicant No.2/complainant had filed the complaint case stating that there is total 04 accused, the applicant and three other co-accused namely Dinesh Singh Gahlon, Sanjay Kumar Soni and Sandeep Sharma. It is alleged that the present applicant informed him about the sale of land bearing Kh. No. 471/19 area 0.065 Hec, therefore, he entered into an agreement dated 07.04.2023 with applicant Pawan Agrawal for purchase of the land 0.07 acre land out of total land 0.065 Hec for sale consideration of Rs. 15,00,000/- and out of which Rs. 2,00,000/- was paid as an advance, one Prakash Sahu and Ramchandra Prajapati have signed as witness of the agreement dated 07.04.2023. It is further alleged that the complainant requested to the applicant for execution of sale deed in the light of agreement dated 07.04.2023 but he was delaying the execution, subsequently he came to know that one Ganesh Singh Gahlot is the actual owner of the land and the co-accused Dinesh Singh Gahlon has personated himself as a son of Ganesh Singh Gahlot and informing the revenue authority about the death of Ganesh Singh Gahlot corrected the revenue records in his name, and he had executed a joint power of attorney dated 16.02.2022 in favour of the applicant Pawan Agrawal and two other accused Sanjay Soni and Sandeep Sharma. It is further alleged that at the time 3 of correction of revenue record the present applicant and other co- accused have also signed in the family tree prepared by the concerned Patwari and, on that basis the Tahsildar has passed the order of correction of revenue records on 23.12.2022 in Revenue Case No. 202202052600004/A-6/2021-2022.After knowledge of the above mentioned fact the non-applicant No.2/complainant made written complaint before the S.H.O. P.S. Balco and Superintendent of Police Korba but they failed to take any action therefore, he had filed the complaint case before the learned Judicial Magistrate First Class Korba, which was allowed and the direction for restriction of F.I.R. has been given. On the basis of order dated 02.05.2025 passed by learned Judicial Magistrate First Class Korba the P.S. Balco has registered the Crime No. 300/2025 against the applicant and other co-accused for the offence punishable U/s 420, 467, 468, 471, 120-B, 34 of I.P.C. 3. Learned counsel for the applicant submits that the applicant is innocent and he has been falsely implicated in this case. He would submit that it is co-accused Dinesh Gahlon who has personated himself as son of Ganesh Singh Gahlot and presented the revenue records where his name was reflected in the revenue record as a owner of the land therefore, the present applicant has not committed any offence as alleged against him and the applicant himself is a victim as he has paid Rs. 5,00,000/- to the co-accused Dinesh Singh Gahlon and executed the power of attorney with respect to the sale of his land. He would further submit that only on the basis of said power of attorney the present applicant entered into an agreement to sale with the respondent No.2/ Complainant on 07.04.2023 but, after knowledge of the cheating committed by the co-accused Dinesh Singh Gahlon, the 4 present applicant himself made contact with the complainant/ non applicant No.2 for return of his earnest money and cancellation of such agreement therefore, there is no intention of the applicant to cheat or defraud anyone. He would submit that the respondent/non applicant No. 02 has given a criminal color to a civil dispute, only in order to extort excess money from the applicant, the applicant is ready to refund the amount received from the complainant but the respondent No. 02/non applicant is using criminal case as a weapon to recover excess money which is not permissible. He would submit that the applicant is the permanent resident of Ward No. 40, Paadimar, P.S. Balco, Dist- Korba (C.G.), therefore there is no apprehension of his absconding and tampering with the witnesses, therefore he prays to enlarge the applicant on anticipatory bail. 4. On the other hand, learned State counsel as also learned counsel for the objector opposes the prayer for grant of anticipatory bail and they would submit that the applicant has five criminal antecedents, therefore he is not entitled for grant of anticipatory bail. 5. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the materials available on record. 6. Considering the facts and circumstances of the case, submissions of learned counsel for the parties, materials available on record, considering the nature of allegation levelled against the applicant, also considering the fact that the applicant has five criminal antecedents and further the fact that investigation is still going on, therefore I am not inclined to grant anticipatory bail to the present applicant. 5 7. Accordingly, the anticipatory bail application of the applicant - Pawan Agrawal, involved in Crime No.300/2025, registered at Police Station Balco, Dist- Korba (C.G.) for alleged commission of offence punishable under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 120-B, 34 of I.P.C. is rejected. Sd/-Sd S Sd/- (Ramesh Sinha) Chief Justice gouri