1 2025:CGHC:53676 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MCRCA No. 1257 of 2025 1 - Virendra Singh Tomar S/o Omprakash Singh Tomar Aged About 44 Years R/o- Sai Villa Colony Bhatagaon, Police Station Purani Basti, Raipur, District- Raipur Chhattisgarh 2 - Rohit Singh Tomar S/o Omprakash Singh Tomar Aged About 31 Years R/o- Sai Villa Colony Bhatagaon, Police Station Purani Basti, Raipur, District- Raipur Chhattisgarh ...Applicants versus State Of Chhattisgarh Through Station House Officer Police Station Purani Basti, Raipur, District Raipur, Chhattisgarh ...Non-applicant For Applicants : Mr. S.C. Verma Senior Advocate with Mr. Sajal Kumar Gupta Advocate. For Non-applicant/State : Dr. Saurabh Pande, Dy. Adv. General and Mr. Jitendra Shrivastava, Govt. Advocate. Hon'ble Mr. Ramesh Sinha, Chief Justice Order on Board 03.11.2025 1. This first anticipatory bail application under Section 482 of the Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 have been filed by the applicants, who are apprehending his arrest in connection with Crime No. 230/2025, registered at Police Station Purani Basti, District - Raipur (C.G.) for the offence punishable under Sections under 111(2), 308(2) VAIBHAV SINGH Digitally signed by VAIBHAV SINGH Date: 2025.11.06 19:32:24 +0530 2 of BNS 2023 and Section 4 of the Chhattisgarh Protection of Debtors Act, 1937. 2. The prosecution case, in brief, is that in connection with Crime No. 332/2025 registered at Police Station Telibandha, Raipur, the police had conducted a raid at the residence of absconding accused Rohit Singh Tomar for offences under Sections 296, 115(2), 351(2), and 3(5) of the BNS, 2023, and thereafter, during investigation, another offence came to light, leading to registration of Crime No. 264/2025 at Police Station Purani Basti, District Raipur, for offences under Sections 384, 506, 34 of the BNS and Section 4 of the Chhattisgarh Protection of Debtors Act, 1937. Upon alleged non-cooperation from the family members of the accused, a search warrant was obtained, and during the search conducted on 03.06.2025, various incriminating materials such as property documents, signed blank cheques, and stamp papers were seized. The investigation revealed that accused Rohit Singh Tomar, along with Virendra and Divyansh Tomar, was running an illegal money-lending racket wherein the accused persons advanced loans at exorbitant interest rates, compelled borrowers to sign blank documents, and upon default, threatened them and forced transfer of their properties at undervalued rates. It was further found that the interest amounts were funneled through accounts of their associates and family members to conceal the illegal transactions. On the basis of the material collected and statements of victims, a fresh FIR was registered against the present applicant and other co- accused persons, namely Shubhra Singh Tomar, Banti Sahare, Jitendra Dewangan, and Bhavna Tomar, for offences punishable under Sections 308(2), 111(1) of the BNS, 2023, and Section 4 of the 3 Chhattisgarh Protection of Debtors Act, 1937, and the investigation is still in progress. 3. The applicants are innocent and has been falsely implicated in the present case. He further submits that the nephew of the applicant possesses a valid money-lending licence issued by the competent authority under Section 4 of the Chhattisgarh Protection of Debtors Act, 1937, a copy of which is annexed herewith. There is a high possibility of delay in trial, and the continued incarceration of the applicant would serve no useful purpose. There are no incriminating circumstances against the applicant Rohit Tomar and co-accused Virendra Tomar. During the investigation in Crime No. 332/2025, the police merely assumed the applicant’s involvement without any concrete evidence, and he has been falsely implicated to harass him and his family members and to exert undue pressure on them. There is no evidence on record to suggest that the applicant conspired with the co-accused to commit the alleged offences, and the charges are based solely on suspicion. The applicant has a fair chance of acquittal as there is no direct evidence against him. It is further submitted that the co-accused persons, namely, Shubhra Singh Tomar, Banti Sahare, Jitendra Dewangan, and Bhavna Tomar, have already been granted bail by the Special Judge (CBI), Raipur, and a copy of the said bail order is annexed herewith. The charge sheet has not yet been filed, and there is no possibility of the applicant interfering with the ongoing investigation. The applicant submits that the actions of the Chhattisgarh Police are arbitrary, mala fide, and politically motivated, initiated to satisfy the ego and vested interests of certain high-ranking officers and political figures. The applicant and his family have been 4 subjected to harassment, and his wife was allegedly mistreated in police custody. The applicant is a permanent resident with stable assets and undertakes to comply with all conditions that may be imposed by this Hon’ble Court, therefore, he prays for grant of anticipatory bail to the applicants. 4. On the other hand, learned State counsel opposes the anticipatory bail application of the present applicants and submits that after recovery of incriminating articles, efforts were made to trace the applicants, however, despite best efforts, they could not be found, and the investigation is still in progress. He further submits that the bail application and submits that the applicant, along with other co- accused persons, is involved in running an organized illegal money- lending racket. During the raid, incriminating materials such as property documents and signed blank cheques were seized, indicating the applicant’s active role. It is further submitted that the accused exploited borrowers by charging exorbitant rates of interest and coercing them to transfer their properties. He further submits that applicant No. 1 Virendra Singh Tomar has 12 criminal antecedents, the particulars of which are mentioned as under. S. N o. Crime / FIR No. & Year Police Station Sections Invoked Status / Remarks 1 130/2006 Saraswat i Nagar, Raipur Sections 307, 324, 147, 148, 149, 34 IPC and Sections 25, 27 of the Arms Act Charge-sheet filed; Criminal Case No. 3653/2006 registered before the competent Court. 2 111/2010 Gudiyari, Sections 294, 323, Charge-sheet filed; 5 S. N o. Crime / FIR No. & Year Police Station Sections Invoked Status / Remarks Raipur 506-B, 34 IPC Criminal Case No. 102/2010 registered before the competent Court. 3 189/2013 Tikrapara , Raipur Section 302 IPC and Sections 25, 27 of the Arms Act Charge-sheet filed; Criminal Case No. 543/2013 registered before the competent Court. 4 181/2016 Purani Basti, Raipur Sections 294, 323, 506, 34 IPC — 5 288/2017 Purani Basti, Raipur Sections 294, 506, 34 IPC — 6 134/2019 Devendra Nagar, Raipur Sections 384, 34 IPC — 7 178/2019 Purani Basti, Raipur Sections 420, 34 IPC — 8 215/2019 Kotwali, Raipur Sections 327, 384, 506-B, 34 IPC — 9 216/2019 Kotwali, Raipur Sections 384, 327, 294, 323, 506-B, 34 IPC — 10 124/2019 Kabir Nagar, Raipur Sections 384, 34 IPC — 11 229/2025 Purani Basti, Raipur Section 25 of the Arms Act — 12 230/2025 Purani Sections 308(2), — 6 S. N o. Crime / FIR No. & Year Police Station Sections Invoked Status / Remarks Basti, Raipur 111(1) of BNS and Section 4 of the Chhattisgarh Protection of Depositors’ Interest Act, 2005 5. He further submits that applicant No. 2 Rohit Singh Tomar has 16 criminal antecedents, the particulars of which are mentioned as under. S. No . Crime No. / Year Police Station Sections Invoked Current Status / Remarks 1 189/2015 Kotwali, Raipur Sections 376, 294, 506, 377 IPC Charge-sheet filed vide Challan No. 194/15 dated 23.08.2015; Criminal Case No. 14318/2015 registered. 2 302/2016 Kotwali, Raipur Sections 323, 506, 34 IPC Charge-sheet filed vide Challan No. 266/16 dated 17.12.2016; Criminal Case No. 23613/2016 registered. 3 288/2017 Purani Basti, Raipur Sections 294, 506, 34 IPC — 4 56/2018 Rajendr a Nagar, Raipur Sections 294, 323, 506, 34 IPC Charge-sheet filed (details mentioned above in chart). 5 121/2018 Purani Basti, Raipur Sections 386, 507 IPC Charge-sheet filed vide Challan No. 75/18 dated 27.05.2018; 7 S. No . Crime No. / Year Police Station Sections Invoked Current Status / Remarks Criminal Case No. 3044/2018 registered. 6 215/2019 Kotwali, Raipur Sections 327, 384, 506-B, 34 IPC Charge-sheet filed vide Challan No. 178/19 dated 14.06.2019; Criminal Case No. 5967/2019 registered. 7 216/2019 Kotwali, Raipur Sections 384, 327, 323, 294, 506-B, 34 IPC Charge-sheet filed vide Challan No. 181/19 dated 19.06.2019; Criminal Case No. 6115/2019 registered. 8 124/2019 Kabir Nagar, Raipur Sections 384, 34 IPC Charge-sheet filed vide Challan No. 194/15 dated 23.08.2015; (also referred above). 9 134/2019 Devend ra Nagar, Raipur Sections 384, 34 IPC Charge-sheet filed vide Challan No. 155/19 dated 30.11.2019; Criminal Case No. 12808/2019 registered. (Earlier Case No. 14318/2015 also registered.) 10 154/2023 Purani Basti, Raipur Sections 294, 323, 506 IPC — 11 93/2024 Teliband ha, Raipur Sections 427, 307, 34 IPC Charge-sheet filed vide Challan No. 144/24 dated 31.03.2024; Criminal Case No. 6832/2024 registered. 12 332/2025 Teliband Sections 296, — 8 S. No . Crime No. / Year Police Station Sections Invoked Current Status / Remarks ha, Raipur 115(2), 351(2) BNS 13 230/2025 Purani Basti, Raipur Sections 308(2), 111(1) BNS and Section 4 of the Chhattisgarh Protection of Debtors Act, 1937 — 14 231/2025 Purani Basti, Raipur Sections 308(2), 111(1) BNS and Section 4 of the Chhattisgarh Protection of Debtors Act, 1937 — 15 253/2025 Purani Basti, Raipur Sections 294, 506, 34 IPC — 16 264/2025 Purani Basti, Raipur Sections 384, 506, 34 IPC and Section 4 of the Chhattisgarh Protection of Debtors Act, 1937 — 6. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the case diary. 7. Counsel for the State further submits that applicant Nos. 1 and 2 are habitual offenders and that during the course of investigation, it was revealed through the District Magistrate, Raipur, that the arms licences issued to applicant No. 1, Virendra Singh Tomar, and applicant No. 9 2/co-accused Rohit Tomar were cancelled in the year 2013 due to their involvement in criminal activities. Hence, there exists prima facie materials against the applicant Nos. 1 & 2, and since the matter is still under investigation, they are not entitled for grant of anticipatory bail. 8. Considering the facts and circumstances of the case, the submissions of learned counsel for the parties, the nature of the dispute, and the material available in the case diary it appears that the applicants, along with other co-accused persons, were involved in running an organized illegal money-lending racket. During the course of investigation in connection with Crime No. 332/2025 and Crime No. 264/2025, incriminating materials such as property documents, signed blank cheques, and stamp papers were seized from the possession of the accused persons, which prima facie indicate their active involvement in the alleged illegal activities. The investigation further reveals that the accused were advancing loans at exorbitant rates of interest, compelling borrowers to sign blank documents, and thereafter coercing them to transfer their properties at undervalued rates. It has also come on record that applicant No. 1, Virendra Singh Tomar, has 12 criminal antecedents, and applicant No. 2, Rohit Singh Tomar, has 16 criminal antecedents as mentioned above, including five cases of similar nature registered against them. Moreover, the arms licences issued to both applicants were cancelled by the District Magistrate, Raipur, in the year 2013 on account of their involvement in criminal activities. Considering the gravity of the offence, the nature of the allegations, and the fact that the investigation is still in progress, 10 looking to the seriousness of the allegations against the present applicants, I am not inclined to grant anticipatory bail to the applicants. 9. Accordingly, the bail application of the applicants – Virendra Singh Tomar & Rohit Singh Tomar, involved in Crime No. 230/2025, registered at Police Station Purani Basti, District - Raipur (C.G.) for the offence punishable under Sections under 111(2), 308(2) of BNS 2023 and Section 4 of the Chhattisgarh Protection of Debtors Act, 1937, are rejected. Sd/- (Ramesh Sinha) CHIEF JUSTICE Vaibhav